Of Ice and Men
by matiwariat
Summary: Haku's dying wish gave Naruto a new view on life and the power to protect those close to him. His will to fight for what he believes was stronger than ever but were the choices he made the right ones? The story and journal of a man at the end of his road, so close to the end.
1. Heart of Ice

Naruto: The Arctic Fox

_-'I sometimes wonder how all of this will end. If in the end will I be forgiven for things I had to do so the others didn't have to. It may sound as if I was trying to rid my mind of thoughts of guilt and it might be true but what is done is done and there is no going back, only forwards to where my choices, our choices, will lead. _

_Jiraiya, my teacher and friend was always the writer but in the end I decided that in what could be my last hours of life that I will write a journal of sorts. A quick rundown of events from my eyes to make sure that the truth does not get bent to fit the current ruler, the current system. _

_I thought a lot to try to see when things changed. What was the event that changed everything and I think I found it..."_

The white hunter-nin mask shattered under Naruto's fist and for the first time in a long time he did not know what to do. Sasuke was gone, no matter how much the Uchiha hated him he was still his only friend and his teammate and now the person who was responsible stood right in front of him. The reaction should have been easy and it would have been to any other ninja but as Naruto looked into Haku's eyes he knew that he could not kill him. The missing-nin was one of the few people who he formed a bond with and no matter how weak he could not break it. They held the same eyes, the same deep emptiness inside. The search for purpose.

After their talk Naruto found a new goal to strive towards, to get stronger for, and while there was still a lot to think about it at least gave him a sense of direction. The path suddenly looked clearer. He would protect those who knew him for the real him and not for some monster or demon as the village called him. Naruto understood that he should not hide who he was and instead find people who accepted him and when he did, protect them with his life. Yes, that was a reason worth living and fighting for... yet as he stared into Haku's eyes a sense of betrayal crept into the back of his mind. A tingling he could not get rid of and could not understand fully either.

Unknown to Naruto, Haku was fighting a battle with himself. Zabuza was the only person left in his life, the only 'family' he had left. He was given an order that he knew he needed to fulfil, he could not let Zabuza down and yet a part of him shouted in protest. All it would take was a few senbon in just the right spot but the pain in the blonde's eyes, hitting so close, feeling so familiar to his own memories...

"Do you remember what I told you in the forest Naruto? To fight for those close to you? This is what I'm doing... I can't stop; I can only walk forward Naruto. Zabuza is the only one I have left" Haku felt a tear slide down his face. This boy held so much innocence; he somehow managed to keep out from the dark corners of the world.

Naruto closed his eyes and tightened his fists. He never thought, only did, but this time he held himself back. It would not bring Sasuke back and if it did then the Uchiha would probably laugh at him for even trying to beat someone who bested the Sharingan. He forced himself still and nodded. A bitter smile making its way onto the blonde's face.

"I think I understand, at least I hope so... You are protecting those precious to you just as I would mine..." Haku smiled but turned his head slightly when he sensed the forming of chakra. The mist has cleared enough for him to see Zabuza and when he did Haku saw what happened to him. The swordsman was held down by a group of nin-dogs and Kakashi was readying himself to finish his job.

"I'm sorry Naruto."Haku used whatever chakra he had left to jump towards Zabuza. Naruto did not know what was happening until he looked towards the left. Everything was moving as if in slow motion. He saw as Kakashi finished preparing his Jutsu and grabbed his right hand with his left at the wrist. The hand slowly started igniting with blue, sparkling electricity while making the sound of chirping birds. Naruto then noticed that Zabuza was held down and that Haku was running towards the both of them. The realisation then hit him...

'He is going to sacrifice himself to intercept whatever Kakashi-sensei was preparing to finish Zabuza with... _'Protect my precious people with all I have, even my life'_ ... that's what I will do... Haku is one of my precious people and if he wants to protect Zabuza then I have to help. I can't just let him throw his life away.' Naruto thought. He felt as this new resolve filled him and he felt a small power surge. He did the same that Haku did just a second ago and jumped in to intercept Kakashi who was now running at Zabuza with his glowing blue hand outstretched and aimed at the swordsman's heart.

Haku was ready to die for Zabuza. He closed his eyes as he jumped into the path of Kakashi's Chidori and waited for it to strike him. He then felt pain but it was nowhere near enough to kill him outright as the assassination Jutsu was supposed to do. Haku opened his eyes and saw a pair of bright, yet slowly dimming, blue eyes looking up at him.

Kakashi could only look on in horror as his Chidori went through Naruto's chest, specifically his left lung. Just before he hit Zabuza, two figures jumped in. The hunter Nin positioned himself in front of Zabuza and then a second later Naruto jumped in and got caught halfway through his jump. 'I-I j-just... no, no this can't be happening again... he can't die...' Kakashi was breaking down in his head, the thought of losing another teammate taking a toll greater than he expected. Slowly he pulled back. The two bodies slipped down to the ground, blood splashing around as the fist sized holes in the chests of the two teens chests became empty. Naruto's went straight through his lung and onto the other side while Haku's was located straight over his heart, the chest ripped open, blood slowly seeping into their clothes. Haku knew that it was his time and that Naruto would be dead as well if he didn't do anything. He turned his head towards the blonde to see the blue eyes slowly going dull, as if life was escaping them but the face had a small smile, a genuine smile that showed that Naruto felt as if for the first time in his life he felt truly happy, as if for the first time he felt that he did the truly right thing.

Kakashi was on his knees, the memories of his team coming back to him. The nin-dogs poofed back to their summon plane and Zabuza fell to his knees as well, he could not feel his arms at all but was still alive; better than expected in his mind. He looked down towards Haku and Naruto and felt a single tear slip from his eye. Even though he never said and told everyone that Haku was just a tool, he was like a son to him and now he had to watch as he died

Haku smiled back at Naruto and saw a small flicker of life in the blonde's eyes. 'He still can be saved' thought Haku and slowly pushed his hand over the whole in Naruto's chest. Slowly he made a couple of one handed signs and his hand glowed green. His healing chakra crept into Naruto's flesh. Naruto's body must have sensed that someone was trying to help as it tried its best to help in the regeneration, forming a reddish hue around the wound. The effect of the two chakras mixing accelerated the healing to impossible levels and the wound closed in seconds. A sigh of relief escaped Haku as he saw life slowly coming back to Naruto's eyes. Hoping that Naruto could hear what he was about to say Haku decided to grant Naruto a gift and started to transfer the remainder of his chakra into Naruto.

"Naruto-kun, it is not your time yet while it is mine... what you did only shows how great of a person you are and that you were true *Cough* to your words." Haku then coughed out more blood as he continued channelling his chakra, he only had seconds left until he was gone. "I wanted to give you my final gift to help you protect those close to you. Many don't know but most kekkei genkai can be transferred when a person is dying *Cough* it is a self preservations mechanism... Make sure you use this gift well..." Haku's hand lightly dropped onto Naruto's back and his eyes went blank as the life completely left his body. The heart which could be clearly seen through the ripped chest stopped beating with a last shudder.

The only sign that Naruto heard and saw everything were the tears coming down the side of his face. Zabuza wanted to feel angry that Haku sacrificed himself for some boy but could not do so as he looked on the content smile on his face. It seemed though that it was not over as a sound of clapping echoed across the now nearly lifeless and unmoving bridge.

"Well that was a splendid show!" the man said. He was short and fat in a way that even the Akimichi's would find disgusting. The vile smile continued spreading on his face. "I had hoped that you Zabuza, the great demon of the mist would be able to finish such an easy mission but you failed me together with this stupid brat of yours. I wanted to kill you myself after the mission was over but this situation is not that bad." The man said as the mercenaries around him started getting out their weapons. Zabuza's eyes burned with rage, Gato was planning on betraying them all along. Zabuza knowing that he would die sooner or later anyway quickly decided that he was going to chose how he would die. Naruto also had to stay alive; he could not let Haku's sacrifice go to waste. His hands were gone so he turned to Kakashi only to see the copy-cat Nin bent over on his knees, looking as if he was going insane with guilt.

"Oy! Scarecrow! Snap out of it or no one is going to survive!" Zabuza shouted. The loud voice brought out Kakashi out of his memories even if for a second. "This blonde kid of yours is alive but he won't be if you don't help me now! I need your help to finish my last fight." Kakashi's eyes widened in shock when he heard that Naruto was alive. He looked down towards the two bodies and saw that Naruto's chest was healed and that he was slowly breathing, unconscious but alive. He then turned his eyes towards the mob of mercenaries who were slowly advancing and understood what Zabuza meant. He himself could not do anything more, his chakra was all but gone and his body was running only on adrenaline. He took out a kunai and threw it to Zabuza who caught it in his teeth. The swordsman picked himself up slowly and, with a nod of his head towards Kakashi, made his way towards the mercenaries.

Naruto slowly managed to drag his eyes open, feeling as if waking from a very long dream _or nightmare_. All of his body stung and felt weak and when he tried to move his limbs incredible pain ran through his body as if after a very long and painful training session. Naruto then decided to try to focus his eyes to see what was happening around him. The first thing he saw were the closed eyes of his friend and enemy. The memories came back full force and suddenly his mind filled to the very edges with images of what happened before he fell unconscious.

Zabuza meanwhile was doing his best. Spinning wildly yet cutting with precision, no strike or movement was wasted and all of this was coming from a man who was holding the kunai in between his teeth and had no feeling in his arms. He was slowly feeling weaker and weaker, his energy slowly reaching its end. Kakashi would be no help already so he could only count on himself to finish this. There was no 'if' he just had to do it, for himself, for Naruto, for Haku...

The mercenaries were falling like flies. Slit throats, impaled on their own weapons or kicked over the railing of the bridge but for every that fell, seemingly two more came. Gato was displeased how his mercenaries were dying so easily but in the end it meant that he would have to pay out less. The feeling of his impending victory over this damn village was hanging in the air together with the stench of fresh blood.

Zabuza was down on his knees, panting, surrounded by about twenty of Gato's men. The feeling of failure lingering in his mind as even in his last act of redemption he would fail. It seemed that there was no atonement for people like him. The wounds were too great, blood was now escaping his lips and formed a tiny stream as it fell down to the ground only to mix in together with the crimson water. He picked up his head only to come face to face with the laughing figure of Gato.

"Demon of the Mist... hahaha, you were and are nothing but a tool and this... is your end." Gato said as he raised his hand ordering one of his men to finish the job.

Naruto moved his eyes up to see Zabuza fall down on his knees, his clothes were now completely covered in blood and the whole area was littered with corpses. The group of what he assumed where mercenaries of some kind slowly approached the swordsman and surrounded him. Naruto subconsciously knew what was going to happen. Then he heard the words he never wanted to hear again yet they were stuck in his mind _'Demon...nothing but a tool...your end'_. All the anger he had bottled up over the years of mistreatment and abuse, his lost childhood, the memories he would never have, the fact that his 'only' friend had just died and now he could not save the person that Haku cared for so much... it was all too much for him. In the inside of his mind a certain fox was grinning, this could be his chance. Naruto felt as power filled him, power he had never felt before. So foreign yet so familiar as if it was a part of him that was put away, hidden in some corner and left to be covered by dust. Naruto rose to his feet, no longer feeling any pain or discomfort. Instead he felt at some level of peace and clarity of mind. He let out a breath that he did not know he was holding and watched curiously as the water condensed and turned white but nothing around him felt cold. He felt the power continue to fill him up.

Inside Naruto's mindscape the fox was chuckling to himself, that is until he felt the sewer water become colder and colder. The fox turned its head to see that the water started freezing rapidly and that there was nowhere to escape. The ice reached its legs and all 9 tails and held them in place. The beast struggled but in the end was unable to break out. He fell onto the now frozen water and let out a furious roar as he felt that his chakra continued to move into his container. Naruto felt himself change somewhat, he felt his nails grow longer and become somewhat like claws, his hair was more wild than normally, his posture changed into a more feral one. He looked down and in the puddle saw the reflection of his face, the whisker marks were more pronounced than ever no longer looking 'cute', his eyes changed into red ones with slits coming down the middle. The blonde turned his head towards Zabuza and saw that one of the men was approaching him with his katana raised and ready to strike. Only a couple of seconds has passed since he came back up to his feet. His mind was clear, he was ready to act.

Zabuza knew that this was his end one way or another. There was no escape from what was about to happen or so he thought.

"You are not so fearsome anymore, now are you? Demon?" The mercenary spat out the last part as he slowly raised his katana, readying a decapitating strike. His arm started to move in a slightly tilted sideways slash aimed at the neck but it never reached its target. Blood sprouted out of the man's mouth; his eyes widened and became dull. His body collapsed to the floor when the new figures clawed hand retreated from the hole he made in the man's throat. Naruto looked around to measure his enemies and when he met some of their eyes, they took a step back.

"A Demon you say... YOU HAVEN'T SEEN A DEMON YET"Naruto shouted and the bloodbath started. He continued pouncing, dodging and redirecting hits. Those who got close enough ended up with a claw in their stomachs or their faces ripped off. Soon enough all the men were gone and now Naruto was standing with his back to Zabuza who was looking on with wide eyes. This boy was stronger than anyone could ever imagine.

Naruto now had his eyes on the last person left. He looked on with disgust at the cowering figure of Gato who now looked like a squirming pig that was about to be slaughtered. His fate was not that far off. Naruto kept advancing while Gato kept pushing away.

"W-what ar-re you?" Gato stuttered out in fear of what was probably the last thing he is going to see before his death.

"I'm going to be your worst nightmare..." Naruto said and raised his hand, about to strike but stopped when he heard someone shout his name from behind. He turned his head only to see Inari running down the bridge, a large crowd of villagers following him. All were armed with weapons and probably ready to fight for their freedom. An idea sprang into Naruto's head and his face turned into a grin as he faced Gato again. The small man shook in fear as he stared into those blood red eyes again. Naruto moved at a high speed and grabbed Gato by the collar of his shirt; he leaned over and started whispering into Gato's ear.

"I was going to kill you but now I have a better idea, some people deserve this revenge more than I do." Naruto then turned back towards the crowd and started dragging Gato on the ground towards the villagers. As he reached them he felt the need for that power disappear and his features slowly turned back to normal. He stopped about two meters from the crowd and threw Gato just in front of them. "He is all yours..." It took only four words, the people literally jumped over Gato and started to drag him back to the village, to make him taste his own medicine. Naruto then turned back around before Inari could say anything. With sad eyes he started moving towards the laying form of Zabuza. When he reached the demon of the mist, Naruto pushed him onto his back. The swordsman was still alive and smiled weakly at Naruto who smiled back. If his arms still worked he probably would have grabbed the blonde and shook him to emphasise what he was about to say.

"Good job with those thugs kid *Cough* I never thought you had it in you... But remember *Cough* do not become like me, don't forsake your humanity." Naruto nodded and Zabuza continued. He had to explain everything before his time was up."I have some things to tell you *Cough* but first could you move my body near Haku's, I want to see before I'm gone..." Naruto nodded again and lightly dragged Zabuza by his feet about halfway before bringing Haku's body over and laying him back down. Zabuza was now facing the dead body of Haku. "I'm sorry Haku that I never *Cough* told *Cough* you how much you *Cough* meant to me..." By now Zabuza started coughing up even more blood. "I hope I will see you soon my son..." Zabuza finished and turned back to Naruto who was kneeling down near Haku. In the corner of his eye he saw that Tazuna and Inari had come closer and were waiting for Zabuza to finish talking with him before they would approach.

"Zabuza-san, please say 'hi' to Haku from me when you see him next." Naruto said with a small smile and a sad, dry chuckle. Zabuza smiled weakly and nodded before speaking.

"I will kid but there is something else I want you to do *Cough* this is my thanks you for showing me *Cough* the light *Cough* in the end... Take care of my sword, if you will not wield it yourself then make sure that Kubikiribōchō does not fall *Cough* into the wrong hands." Zabuza took in what was probably his last large breath before he died. "Mine and Haku's base is around three miles south of here, its hidden inside a cave *Cough* go there and take whatever you find useful, it is the least *Cough* I can *Cough* do..." Naruto nodded and a tear fell down from his face, he looked to Zabuza who continued smiling weakly. "Take care... kid." Zabuza's eyes closed and he was gone from this world, hopefully somewhere together with Haku. Naruto shed the last of his tears and decided to bury the two somewhere nearby. With his back still turned to Tazuna and Inari he spoke.

"Tazuna-san, could you take Kakashi back to your house? I will send a clone with you in case my teammates have questions." Tazuna thought for a second. Why wasn't the blonde coming back himself. Naruto sensed the hesitation and felt the unspoken question linger in the air. "I can't go back... yet. I still have something I have to do." Tazuna nodded and decided to not ask any questions, all this time Inari stood there silently. He was not sure if it was the right time to speak and decided against it. Naruto formed a handsign and three Kage bunshins popped into existence. One of them went over to Tazuna and helped him carry Kakashi back to the house. The other two together with the original waited until the bridge was empty. The clones picked up Zabuza's body while Naruto himself picked up Haku. He then started his trek to the place where possibly one of his happiest memories originated from. That little clearing inside the forest where he met the real Haku. It took Naruto and his clones about ten minutes to arrive at the spot. They set the bodies on the grass beside the tree on which Naruto was sleeping that day. 'Yes...this is a good spot...' Naruto and his clones dug two graves, placed Haku and Zabuza inside and covered it back up. Naruto then ordered his clones to bring over a rock large enough to write on it. They sat the rock plate between the two graves and Naruto with a kunai started to engrave a small passage. Just a few lines to make sure that it would not be forgotten who was the real hero this day.

_-'I ever went back to that place only once when I travelled the elemental nations, looking for a place for myself, for a purpose or a goal as the ones I held before slipped between my fingers. The one time I came back it was just as I left it but it brought no memories or feelings, it doesn't now. I like to think that I dealt with my feelings but deep inside I know that the day I set that stone on their grave was the last time I would feel alive in years... I have to thank her for bringing me back as without her I would not be writing this right now...'_

Naruto stood up slowly, smiling sadly at the two graves. Only he would know where they were and he would damn make sure that no one who did not need to know, would not. He turned back to his two clones.

"You two, I need you to go back and guard Kubikiribōchō until I come back. Try to gather the pieces of Haku's mask as well." Naruto said. The clones nodded before jumping off in the direction of the bridge. Normally the clones disagreed and tried to discuss things with their 'boss' but this time they were silent, as if understanding the weight of the situation. Naruto looked up at the sky to check the position of the sun and started moving towards the hideout as fast as he could. He wanted to be back before the sun has set and before Kakashi woke up or Sakura had hit him for another stupid reason. If all went well then no one would even notice that he was gone...

**To Be Continued...**


	2. Bridge over troubled water

Naruto: The Arctic Fox

Naruto jumped from branch to branch, pushing more and more chakra into his feet to increase his speed. He always knew that he had more chakra than most others and he was able to use large amounts of it without getting tired but this felt different. He could never use it this well before, now it felt incredibly easy to use small amounts of it rather than pumping the technique full of chakra as he did before. As soon as he touched down on a branch that bordered a small clearing he knew he was in the right place. Naruto looked around and saw the 'mountain' if it could be called that, it was certainly the place but where was the entrance? 'But it has to be here...' he took a few steps forward and shivered lightly, as if something disturbed him slightly. He couldn't think of anything that could have caused this. Naruto started to recall all the lessons he heard from Iruka or the Hokage, surely through all his life they must have said something about how ninja hide their camps and such. _'Genjutsu do not have to target a person, instead they can cover an area and affect anyone who enters... NARUTO! WERE YOU SLEEPING IN CLASS AGAIN?'_He would have to thank Iruka for that, maybe he would manage to get his sensei to pay for his ramen again...

_-'I never got around to thanking him, to thank anyone for the many things they done for me. By the time I saw them again it was already too late and now it is not the place or time for it anymore. Hopefully I will be granted another chance...'_

"Hmh so this must be a Genjutsu that Zabuza placed to protect their hideout... but how I break it?" Naruto strode back and forward, again trying to remember what Iruka said during the academy. "Grrrr I wish I had listened to at least some of it back then!" Naruto exclaimed to no one in particular, he was getting angry at himself because such a simple thing was not allowing him to honour the last wishes of his friends. His anger was building up and unconsciously he started releasing chakra, what was even more curious was that some of Kyuubi's chakra was still flowing in him after the last fight and the presence of the demonic chakra suddenly disrupted the illusion.

Naruto felt something change, as if a bubble burst open inside his head. He turned around to take a look at the Genjutsu again only to find it gone and in the same spot was a pretty large cave entrance.

"Huh... whatever I did must have worked..." Naruto said with a sigh. On one hand he was happy that somehow he broke the illusion but then again he had no idea what he did and so the event could be attributed solely to blind luck. His smile returned full force when he realised how much was waiting for him inside.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Inside the village shouts of celebration rolled across the empty side alleys, all coming from the village centre and the village's only inn. The greatest enemy of the wave was brought down today by the group of Konoha Shinobi, the man who was responsible for turning their lives into hell on earth was finally gone for good but most importantly the people of wave regained their hope, their hope in people and hope for the future and all of this was mainly thanks to a certain blonde haired Shinobi. The now hailed 'hero of the wave' in the end even gave the people their revenge on that wretched pig. What Naruto did not know was that through his actions he had managed to spread Konoha's long lost will of fire to the people of the wave.

Tazuna and Inari were now sitting by the dinner table, talking about everything and anything. For the first time in a long time they could finally talk without the fear of tomorrow never coming for them or one of those close to them. Tsunami together with Sakura were now tending to the unconscious Sasuke. Meanwhile in the opposite room lay the sleeping form of Kakashi, beside him one of Naruto's clones was sitting cross legged and keeping a watch over his 'sensei'. When Naruto was forming the clones back at the bridge he was thinking of informing Kakashi of everything, excluding his talk with Haku and Zabuza. This particular clone would tell Kakashi as much as he could when the silver haired jonin woke up. Unless 'boss' came back first.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto was now inside a cave, he took a look around and saw as much as he expected from a medium term hideout. Two rolled up sets of futons and pillows, what remained of a fireplace, some empty bottles and old bandages 'probably from when Zabuza was hurt during out first meeting.'

Everything was packed and ready to go; they were readying themselves to finish the job and leave. 'Surely Zabuza did not want me to take their futons or cutlery, there has to be something here' and as if on call Naruto stumbled upon a large scroll, the scroll looked somewhat familiar to the scroll of seals but was slightly thinner, the wrappings were navy blue in colour and had a shoulder strap attached to it. Naruto thought for a second and remembered how the Hokage told him about sealing things in scrolls when he gave Naruto a get well gift in the form of a set of kunai which he got out of a small scroll. 'Maybe they sealed everything inside, if you can store hundreds of kunai in a scroll much smaller then who knows... no matter, I will think about this later.' With that Naruto threw the scroll over his shoulder making it hang parallel to the ground on his back. It seemed as if nothing else was in the cave, either it was all in the scroll, was thrown out, stolen or was not here in the first place. He was about to leave the place until he heard a small whimper in the back of the cave. The first thought was that he was tired and started to imagine things but then Naruto heard it again. He turned around and after looking back at the place for a couple of seconds he finally found the source of the noise, a meter tall old cardboard box which was tucked away into the most backside of the cave but was still slightly visible. 'Am I really that stupid that I did not notice that box...? NANI? How did I manage that... I feel so bad now... I could have went away and left something very important in here.' Naruto was berating himself in his head when he heard another noise coming from the same spot. He approached the box and slowly took off the cardboard. At first he was surprised but after a while a small, genuine smile appeared on his face.

"I suppose Haku did like his white, furry friends..." Naruto said softly as he looked towards the pair of small white rabbits sitting in the top half of the double cage. "Well guys, I can't just leave you here so I might as well let you go..." Naruto slowly opened the cage and took out the rabbits that were now looking at him curiously. He placed them on the ground and as soon as his hands retreated back the two rabbits ran out of the cave to enjoy their new found freedom. His back was still turned back to the cage when he heard someone speak.

"Ano, ninja-san do you know when Haku-san will come back?" Naruto was scared out of his skin; he whipped around and checked around him to find no one there. Then the voice spoke again. "Look down here!" Naruto was still in light shock but looked down and realised that the only thing that could have spoke was the resident of the bottom part of the cage which he had yet to check. He crouched down to have a better look and was amazed at what he found. Sitting behind the bars was a small snow white fox, around the size of Kiba's Akamaru.

"Hey, I suppose I can set your free as well..." Naruto said and opened the cage but the fox did not move and continued sitting there. He saw its small jaws move as if it was barking but he did not hear any barking, instead he heard the same voice again.

"No, I don't want to leave. I want to wait for Haku-san to come back." Apparently the fox said. Now the only thought going through Naruto's head was 'I really must be going mental' but he decided to answer anyway.

"I'm sorry but Haku and Zabuza are dead..." when those words left his mouth a tinge of pain ran through his heart, not only for himself but also for the little creature in front of him who was obviously very attached to Haku. The fox's ears and whiskers drooped and he looked downwards in sadness. They both stayed this way for a few seconds before the fox's head shot up with wide eyes.

"Y-you c-can understand m-me?" The fox said. By now not many things could amaze Naruto as his life seemed to spin around crazy events so he just nodded. The fox continued staring, probably not sure what to make of this. "B-but how?" This time Naruto decided to speak.

"I assume that is because I'm the jailor of Kyuubi the nine-tailed fox..." he said with a sigh. The fox thought about it for a second before nodding in acceptance. It is not that Kyuubi is the leader of the foxes or anything like that but he was a force of nature. Kyuubi roamed the lands for as long as anyone can remember and his powers granting the ability to talk with foxes was not that far out on the craziness scale. Naruto thought about it, he could not just leave the poor thing here alone. Especially if Haku cared for him or her so much. A thought crossed his mind and suddenly his prankster side rose up 'imagine the faces of the villagers of they saw me with a fox...' "So what is your name since I don't think I have gotten it yet?" Naruto asked genuinely curious.

"Uhm... Haku-san always called me Yuki-chan..." The fox replied shyly. Naruto smiled warmly at the cute fox in front of him.

"Ok then Yuki-chan, I have a proposition for you! Haku and Zabuza told me to take anything I need from here and seeing as you were Haku's friend I feel like I should protect you as well. So what do you say about coming with me?" Naruto said with enthusiasm but not too loudly as to not scare the canine. "It is your choice though, remember that." Yuki tilted her head as she thought she could come with this person and have a new home, he seemed nice as well or she could stay here and probably starve since she was still too small to hunt. One way out was definitely better than the other. Slowly she walked out of her cage and towards Naruto. He unzipped his jumpsuit lightly and pulled her inside so that only her head was sticking out.

"So where are we going now..."

"I have something that I need to pick up and my name is Naruto, Naruto Uzumaki!"

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

The two clones guarding Kubikiribōchō were getting really bored, their boss was gone for so long and nothing was happening. The only things they could do were to throw stones into the water or argue with each other. They had to cut their debate on which ramen flavour was the best as their boss appeared out of the tree tops. His arrival was a signal for them to dispel since they were no longer needed. When the clones poofed into smoke Naruto stood still for a second before muttering something about beef ramen being obviously the best 'Wait! Did I just remember what they were talking about... this is strange. I have to ask someone about it once I come back to Konoha.'

Yuki by now snoring lightly, the jumpsuit was very warm on the inside and Naruto's way of travel across the trees was very silent and peaceful. Naruto sighed as he looked towards the huge cleaver laying on the bridge, some blood stains were still visible on the stone surface of the bridge but it seemed that the villagers cleaned up most of the mess. Naruto reached out to pick up the sword from the ground but in the end he only managed to lift it for about a minute before he had to drop it, all the while he was sweating and panting 'Damn! I knew that it was heavy but this is crazy. There is no way I can carry this back to Konoha... unless...' Naruto gently lowered the sword and picked the scroll off his back. He looked at it for a second before a part of it. The whole area of the scroll was covered with circles, all connected with some strange symbols he could not understand. Each circle contained a kanji inside of it 'probably saying what is sealed inside' ranging from "senbon" to "Hyōton". Naruto looked over it and found one of the circles to be empty. He concentrated on remembering how Hokage-jiji used the scroll but he could not remember anything even if his life depended on it. Naruto was slowly falling into panic...

Yuki woke up to the sound that resembled growling. She unburied her head from Naruto's jacket and looked up to him. His face was slightly angry but the most prominent emotion on his face was frustration. . She nudged him with her nose to get his attention and to take his mind away from whatever was frustrating him so much. It worked instantly as Naruto's eyes moved to look at the little fox.

"Naruto-san, what's wrong?" she asked

"Huh? Oh yeah... I don't know how to seal things into a scroll and the sword is too heavy for me to carry but I can't leave it here... also call me just Naruto. I hate those formalities..." Naruto said, at the end he sighed slightly in defeat.

"Uhm, I remember Haku-san used to put things on top of the scroll and then place his hand over the thing. His hands would then glow light blue and the things would disappear..." Naruto immediately perked up when he heard that. He still was not completely sure if it would work but there was not much else he could do. He dragged the cleaver on top of the empty spot on the scroll. He placed his hand over the sword and the seal and started channelling chakra into it. In his mind he kept repeating the same words as if it was some sort of mantra 'Seal! Seal! Common it has to work! Seal!' There was a cloud of smoke and when Naruto brushed it away he found the sword to be gone and in its place appeared the kanji for sword right inside the circle.

"It worked! I am awesome..." Naruto took out the startled fox out of his jacket and hugged her tightly while repeating 'thank you'. When the excitement died down the fox was back inside the jacket and the rolled up scroll was back on Naruto's back. Now they could finally go back to Tazuna's home and soon, they would be back in Konoha.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto, Kakashi, Sasuke and Sakura were now walking back to Konoha. Naruto was relieved when he found out that Sasuke would be completely fine after all. He disliked the teme but in the end knew that they had some form of friendship, he still remembered the days when they were good friends before things changed. Sasuke was leading so he could set the pace he was comfortable with while Kakashi stuck to the back to keep a lookout over the whole group. Naruto and Sakura were stuck in the middle of the diamond shaped formation.

Naruto needed some peace and quiet to think of what to do once he was back in Konoha, he could also feel his sensei's eyes on the back of his head. When the jonin woke up after healing from his chakra exhaustion he had asked Naruto to relay to him what happened. The boy told him a story which might have sounded right to a civilian or a rookie Shinobi but not to an ex-anbu. Kakashi saw that Naruto was hiding something. When he asked the others present in the house about his pupils behaviour during the day he was out the only answer he got was that the blonde stayed together with him most of the time and did not leave the room. Kakashi tried to behave as lazy and uninterested as before but he could not figure this one out. When they left wave he also noticed that Naruto stayed silent for most of the journey. Kakashi's thoughts were all over the place by now, he took a glance at the blonde running in front of him and saw the small white ears and top of the head of the fox stick out of the backpack Naruto was carrying. Kakashi then looked at the scroll attached to the bottom of the backpack. When he asked Naruto about those the only answer he got was that of _'I believe that the Hokage should hear this first and then decide what to do...'_All of this was plain nerve wrecking to Kakashi even though on the outside he seemed completely calm and engrossed in his orange covered book.

Naruto was still thinking what to tell to Hiruzen and then what to do after the report is done 'Ramen...' was the most common thought running through his mind at the moment but the others were to search for a place to safely study the scrolls, ask Ojisan about the Kage bunshins, find someone to teach him how to wield Kubikiribōchō properly and to ask someone how to use sealing scrolls properly. The thought that him sealing the sword on first try with no knowledge was just a fluke unnerved him; he could not depend on luck or at least not anymore. His clothes would also need a change. For one the ones he was wearing now were covered in mud, blood and were torn in multiple spots. The second reason was that he felt that what others told him about ninja not wearing flashy clothes was true. He had to become serious about his life and his 'job'; otherwise he would not live long enough to fulfil his promise, to become Hokage one day.

Sasuke was getting angrier by the second. He got defeated even after releasing the sharingan, he failed... he was not strong enough. If he lost to some hunter-nin then how could he hope to match up to his brother... 'Itachi must have been right...' His thoughts then moved onto his teammate, Naruto. During their last dinner Tazuna and Inari were telling what they saw happen on the bridge. Apparently the dobe together with Zabuza defeated a large group of mercenaries and then brought Gato to the knees, begging for his life. 'If he was still fighting after I lost then that means that he defeated this hunter-nin...No, I won't let some idiot humiliate me. The next time I will show them who the stronger one is!'

All four continued down the path towards Konoha, each wanting to be back as fast as they could, each for their own separate reasons.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Today was a peaceful day in Konoha, the chunnin guarding the gates had an easy time with only couple of long known and trusted merchants were coming in or out. For a certain duo the day was way too quiet, they were bored out of their minds...

"Eh, Izumo aren't you bored of just watching the grass grow? Common I have a deck of cards so we could play..." Izumo's eye twitched in frustration 'Why am I stuck with this idiot? Oh yeah because he is my best friend... but I swear I might kill him one day.'

"For the last time Kotetsu, NO! Don't you remember what happened the last time we got caught after I gave into your pleading? Hmh? Now sit your ass on the chair and watch the gates." Izumo felt a shiver run up his spine when he recalled what happened when they got caught the last time. Reluctantly he sat down on his chair and did what he was told. It took him only five minutes to start falling asleep but he came out of the trance when he saw four figures approaching, when they got closed enough he stood up and alerted Izumo. When they got out to greet the newcomers and check their papers they saw the orange jumpsuit and realised it was Naruto with team seven coming back from the escort mission in wave. They missed the blonde kid, with him in town it was always much more interesting. Before either of them said even 'hi' and instead the whole team just ran past them and headed further into the village. The chunnin duo just shrugged and went back to their chairs.

Kakashi dismissed Sasuke and Sakura and told Naruto to follow him to Hokage's office. Sakura wondered if Naruto was in trouble for something but she did not participate in the fight much and she had no idea what happened inside the mist on the bridge. Kakashi was getting really anxious to hear what really happened and what is going on with his blonde student while Naruto just wanted to get it over with so he could start on his list of 'stuff I have to do'. They both took to the rooftops without saying a word and in couple minutes later were at the bottom of the Hokage tower. They entered through the large doors and headed straight up towards the office. On the way there the secretary told them that the Hokage was already waiting for them. Kakashi was about to stop Naruto from barging in without knocking but it did not happen. Naruto was standing still and looking out the window, towards the village. Kakashi shook his head lightly and reached for the doors, as soon as his fingers touched the wood a voice from the inside shouted for them to come in.

Hiruzen cringed in pain when he looked up at his desk after signing yet another paper, the reason for the 'pain' was the fact that the stack was not getting smaller at all. He really was getting too old for this. Rescue seemed to come when one of his anbu informed him that team seven has returned from their mission and that Kakashi is heading here together with Naruto. He could understand Kakashi giving a report but why would Naruto be coming? Hiruzen had this strange underlying feeling that he will not like what he was about to hear. He used the intercom to tell his secretary to let Kakashi and Naruto in, he waited a few seconds and when he felt Kakashi's chakra near the door he told them to come in.

"So I assume you have a report on your mission for me Kakashi?" Kakashi nodded, the Hokage motioned for both of them to sit down and watched them with a careful eye. Before Naruto sat down, he took off his backpack and gently laid it on his lap after he sat down. Kakashi slowly started to tell of everything that happened and Hiruzen was going between anger and relief but mostly anger due to the fact that Kakashi continued the mission even after they were attacked by two chunnin level ninjas and then an A-rank missing nin from Kirigakure and was furious at the fact that Naruto apparently took a Chidori to the chest. The Hokage noticed many holes in the whole story and safely assumed that Naruto had something to do with it. While Kakashi was speaking he was watching Naruto and the bag he was so carefully holding, he noticed that the bag would twitch slightly from time to time 'Now I'm really curious what is going on' Hiruzen thought and smiled inside 'things are never easy with Naruto...' Kakashi finally finished his story and waited for the Hokage to answer. Sarutobi turned his head towards Kakashi and looked at him with a serious look that had a lingering promise of pain to which Kakashi felt a tiny shiver running up his spine, he did not see that look for years now but the Hokage even in his old age was still the god of Shinobi.

"Kakashi, I will talk to you later about taking a rookie genin team on an A-ranked mission and your training methods but for now I believe Naruto has something to say." The first part was said with a tone that held no compromise but the second part held more of a curious edge to it. Naruto felt the three eyes looking at him and sighed, preparing himself for lots of talking, explaining and questions. He fidgeted slightly in his seat, took a large breath and started.

"Ok, so where do I start. Kakashi knows of everything except for my meeting with Haku and what happened when he was out so I will start with the meeting..." and Naruto started telling his own story while his sensei and adoptive grandfather listened. Everything was fine until Naruto got to the part where Haku has said his final words. Now both Sarutobi's and Kakashi's eyes widened in disbelief. Kakashi turned to the Hokage.

"Hokage-sama is that even possible? If it is then why have we not heard of it before?" Sarutobi thought for a second. Kakashi did have a valid question and he himself was curious if it was actually true.

"I have not heard of anything like this before myself but who knows, the world is filled with things waiting to be discovered and Naruto here seems to be a magnet of the unusual." Sarutobi then reached inside one of the drawers in his desk and took out a small rectangular piece of paper. "Here." He said while handing it to Naruto. "This is chakra affinity paper, when you put chakra into it, its reaction to your chakra will show us your affinity. If you do posses the Hyōton then it should show on the paper." Naruto nodded and put the paper between his thumb and index finger and held it up high enough for everyone to see. He channelled some chakra into the paper and observed the results. The paper got wet immediately, at the same time a cut started to cut the paper in half but before it finished the whole thing froze into solid ice gaining wide eyes from all three present in the room. Sarutobi reached out to touch the ice but as soon as he did he felt the tip of his finger gain light frostbite all the while Naruto was just holding it as if nothing.

"So it seems it's true. Naruto, I will have to put this forward to the council. A new bloodline appearing is not something to be taken lightly but I will make sure that nothing bad will happen. I promise." Sarutobi said and returned the small smile that Naruto gave him. He then motioned for the blonde to continue. Naruto then told of him using this new power to help Zabuza at first the two adults thought it was the Kyuubi but after Naruto described it they decided that it could not be as Kyuubi's chakra is red in colour and has this vile, monstrous feeling. Naruto continued on to Zabuza's death, his travel to their hideout, the scroll and Yuki-chan. When her name was mentioned she immediately woke up and peered out of the backpack but retreated with haste when she saw the two new people.

"So this is what you have been hiding inside this backpack all this time." Sarutobi mused while looking at the small fox ears that were the only visible feature as the rest of the fox was hiding inside the bag. Naruto turned the bag to face him and slowly opened the tope up. The fox was scared and there wasn't more it 'I suppose she didn't meet many people other than me and Haku...'

"Yuki-chan, it's ok to come out. You don't have to be scared. This is the Ojisan I have told you about and this is my sensei." Naruto assured as he pointed to the Hokage and Kakashi. Her ears perked up and the tail swished lightly. She nodded lightly and got out of the pack to lie down on Naruto's knees while he lowered the pack to lie beside his chair. He patted his companion on the head before continuing with his tale about getting the sword back and finally getting into Tazuna's house. Hiruzen shook his head in disbelief at how impossible all of this seemed but then again this was Naruto. "Ok this is everything." Naruto said as he let out a large breath. The Hokage thought for a second before turning to Kakashi.

"If that is all then you may leave, I still need to talk with Naruto for a while. Inform your other students that you have a week off for recovery and that the mission payment for an A-rank will be sent to their accounts." Kakashi nodded and 'poofed' out of the office with his usual eye-smile. "So Naruto, I feel like you have some questions." Naruto nodded with a serious face.

"I do and it is quite a list..."

"Go on but one at a time please." The Hokage replied and braced himself for the questions.

"Sure, first I wanted to ask you to show me how the sealing scrolls work. I remembered you do it once and I managed to seal Zabuza's sword in it but I want to make sure I did it right." Hiruzen then went onto show Naruto how to seal and unseal items; apparently Naruto was born with a natural talent for it since he got it again first time. When Naruto saw that he didn't do anything wrong when sealing Kubikiribōchō he let out a sigh in relief. "Number two, is there any training ground where I could study the scrolls and train alone and undisturbed?" Hiruzen thought for a moment and a strange idea popped into his head.

"The only training ground I know off that would leave you in peace without anyone interrupting you is training ground number forty-four, the forest of death." He smirked lightly when Naruto shivered lightly before starting to grin as well.

"It will do, now I'm looking for someone I can trust that could teach me how to wield this sword." Naruto said while pointing towards the scroll.

"The training ground I suggested is normally occupied by a certain kunoichi; I believe that she could help you find someone to teach you Kenjutsu." The Hokage answered while thinking if it was a good idea to put Anko and Naruto anywhere near each other. This could be his most brilliant idea or a large influx of paperwork and headaches. Naruto nodded, deciding to think about it later since he still was not anywhere near strong enough to even lift the cleaver for more than a minute or two.

"This is I believe the last one, I'm... worried about Yuki-chan's safety. You know how the villager's are with foxes and I don't want anyone to hurt her just because of the Kyuubi." Naruto said with concern, Yuki woke up again at the sound of her name and heard what Naruto said. She was happy that after just two days of knowing her he was so concerned. Now the fox was looking at the person who Naruto calls Ojisan, she was waiting for an answer. Sarutobi was thinking of any possible ways to make sure that the little fox would not be hurt. His thoughts went back to how he placed Naruto in the academy to make him a ninja to help him defend himself and to stop any attacks from the less bold villagers. It is illegal to attack a ninja of the village. Then the most obvious came to him. He reached into another drawer and searched for something. Naruto and Yuki were watching curiously as Sarutobi fished out a Konoha forehead protector. Hokage saw the slight confusion in their expressions and let out a small chuckle before explaining himself.

"If Yuki-chan remained a normal pet then there would be nothing I could do but if... she became your companion then she would be obeying laws similar to those of any ninja of Konohagakure. All you need to do now is go to a veterinarian for a check up. If I might suggest I would try the Inuzukas, I'm sure that if you told them your story then they would help you with training of your little friend as well, they know what it means to be like you..." Hiruzen finished with a smile and was met with wide grin from Naruto and a happy yip from the fox.

"Thanks for everything Ojisan! By the way, could I get the money from the mission now? I sort of need new clothes." Naruto said as he scratched the back of his head in slight embarrassment. The Hokage looked over his clothes and he had to agree that they were not usable anymore.

"I will inform the secretary to hand you your money on your way out. Now go Naruto, I have tons of paperwork still left to do."

"Thanks again Ojisan!" Naruto said. He then grabbed the headband and tied it around Yuki's neck as if it was a collar. He stood up, threw the backpack on his back and was about to walk out when he remembered something he was meant to ask.

"By the way Ojisan, do the shadow clones transfer memories when they dispel?" Hokage was taken back slightly by the question; he thought that Naruto had read everything that was on the scroll but then again...

"Yes they do everything they learn is transferred to you when they die." Naruto thought for a second and a brilliant idea started forming in his head.

"So do you think that I could use them for training?"

"Hmh, no one has tried it before but with your chakra reserves I would think so. But remember that things like physical training won't transfer over." Naruto nodded in acceptance, it did make sense. He then grinned like he did when doing one of his pranks.

"Then why don't you use them to do this 'horrible paperwork' of yours then?" Before Hiruzen could even reply, Naruto was gone together with his companion. The doors clicked signalling that they closed and at that moment everything sunk in into the Hokage's head. Sounds of something banging against wood and groans of frustration echoed throughout the tower.

_-'It was much later that I really realized how much he did for me, how much he sacrificed just so I could get even a sliver of a normal life. We do not always get what we want, life does not go easy on anyone and it certainly didn't for me but without him it would have been that much harder...In the end I never figured out why it took him so long to start using shadow clones for his work though...'_

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Meanwhile Naruto was walking down to one of Konoha's clothing shops which actually sold him clothes. The person running the shop always said that it did not matter to him who was buying things from him as long as he paid for the goods. The man was not overly friendly but he did not despise Naruto either, he was just indifferent. Yuki was currently sitting back inside the pack since she was not a nin-fox just yet. They also wanted to avoid any unwanted attention. Naruto grinned as he thought about getting a new attire, he liked the orange but he was sure that if he changed his clothes then no one would actually realise it was him.

The ball jingled lightly as the doors to the Shinobi clothing store opened, the owner looked up from the paper he was currently reading and seeing that it was no one that required special attention he went back to reading. Naruto started walking around the racks of clothes, picking up things that he liked and sometimes asking Yuki for opinions. One item especially caught her attention and she surprised Naruto by giving him an 'order' to get it. He got all the clothes together and set the pack down before going into the changing rooms. It took about ten minutes for him to change and walk out and if someone saw him right now they would not be able to say it was Naruto unless they focused specifically on the face. Going from the bottom he wore black, steel toed combat boots. Camo cargo pants using the colours of white, grey and navy with two holsters; one for kunai and shuriken and one for senbon which he was sure to learn how to use. Next was a dark navy t shirt with elbow length sleeves. Over that was a navy coloured flak jacket with a white piece of fur attached around the neck together with the elongated neck guard padding. Around his hands, instead of gloves was combat tape going up to the elbows. Naruto looked into the mirror and grinned at his new look, it was more how a ninja is supposed to look, it was practical and looked good if the cheerful yip from his companion had anything to say. Naruto did not bother changing into his old clothes and instead walked up to the owner.

"Hi, could I get five sets of all of this except the boots plus the one I have on me right now?" The owner looked at him; the question of 'why didn't you change back into your old stuff' was hanging in the air. Naruto caught it quickly to make sure not to anger the man so he didn't have to search for another store. "Uhm you see, my old clothes got trashed during my last mission and when I took them off they sort of... I don't think I would be able to actually put them back on." Naruto said, slightly embarrassed at the whole situation. The man thought for a moment before nodding and going into the back of the shop to bring the goods. About five minutes later he came back with everything, he was barely holding onto it but he managed to set all of it on the counter. He counted up the total and watched as Naruto took out a stack of money. After the trade was complete the shopkeeper could not help but wonder how that boy would carry all of those things back to wherever he was going, he was surprised when Naruto rolled out the scroll, placed the stack on top of another free space and well... sealed it inside. The blonde waved good bye and left the store, it was getting late and he still had to go visit the vet. The backpack with Yuki and the scroll on his back and his new clothes on he was now heading towards the Inuzuka clan compound.

**To Be Continued...**


	3. Troublesome women

Naruto was nearing the Inuzuka clan compound; he could already see the two guards standing in front of the entrance with their companions. So far Naruto was in a great mood, no one except of a few very observant people realised it was him when he was walking down the street. He got some strange and curious looks but not much else. For the first time in his life he managed to walk down the main street in the village and not hear even one curse whispered towards 'I don't know if I should laugh or cry at those people. A change of clothes and they don't recognise the blonde hair and the marks...' he walked up to the gate and the guards stood at attention, one of them walked up to probably check the papers or something. Naruto was not sure how any of this worked since he never visited anyone other than the Hokage.

"Name and reason for visit." The Inuzuka guard said in a monotone voice. He must really hate his job and by the look on the dogs face he was not the only one.

"Uzumaki Naruto, I'm looking for a veterinary clinic for a check-up on my friend." Naruto said. He did not really want to reveal that he was carrying a fox in his backpack before everything was finalised. The guard passed his eyes over him, probably eyeing his new attire and then just waved him inside before going back to his post. Naruto walked into the compound and took in all the sights, he loved seeing new things and the only time he was around here was during one of his pepper bomb pranks and that was at night so he did not see much. Around the compound were scattered some buildings, probably living quarters and most of the area between them was covered by green fields of grass and different kinds of trees quite fitting for how the Inuzuka were supposed to be close to nature. In the very middle was the main clan building were Naruto assumed the clan head and their family lived and where the clan council meetings were held. After walking around for about ten minutes and not finding anything he finally asked one of the residents who pointed him to a two storey building that had some dog house and kennels outside, one of the glass windows had a red cross painted on it signifying that it was a medical facility of sorts. Naruto wanted to slap himself for missing something so obvious. He walked up to the building and entered trough the automatic glass doors. The inside looked way too much like the hospital for his liking but he had to endure. The place where the secretary was supposed to be was empty so Naruto decided to check out the back. He noticed that one of the doors was slightly open and so he walked in.

Hana was having a very... annoying day, that was a fitting word. She liked her job but sometimes it just pissed her off. She was happy that no dogs were injured and she did not have to help them out she was still stuck inside the clinic and had to do everything else which consisted of cleaning out the kennels, disinfecting the tools and filling out the paperwork. The fact that she was the only one in that day did not help. Right now she was sitting behind a desk, filling in an order form for medicine and medical tools but a certain blonde was about to make her life just this one bit more interesting. She heard the door open and when she brought her eyes up she saw a mop of blonde hair walk inside. Obviously the guy was not from the clan but then why was he here? If he wanted to go to a vet then why choose the much more expensive shinobi vet for your normal house pet.

"Hi, I'm sorry if I interrupted or something but there was no one outside so..." By now Naruto was standing there and mumbling something while scratching the back of his head. Hana raised an eyebrow at what he was doing; it's as if he was not sure how to behave...

"Don't worry I'm the only one in here today, so what can I help you with?" Hana said with a smile. Naruto sighed in relief that she either did not knew who he was or did not care. He then smiled lightly before speaking.

"You see I met a new friend during my last mission and she wanted to come back with me, now I need to get her a check up so she can be registered as my official companion." Hana raised an eyebrow at this, it was rare for ninja to want to register found animals as companions and the only ones that were really did it were her clan. Some ninja utilised the summons but that's about it. She was also curious on what sort of animal it was and where it was.

"Sure we can do that, just put your friend over on that table and we can start the examination and the give her some immunity shots. It will take about fifteen minutes max." Hana said before bending down from her chair to get the vials and other tools from one of the bottom drawers. When she got up and looked at the desk she saw what looked like a ball of white fur, taking a second look she realised it was a young fox and the first thing that ran through her mind was _'KAWAII'_ but she pushed those thoughts away to remain professional. She started to check the fox for any sickness, physical fitness and anything else that she would with an Inuzuka dog. She started preparing the syringe but when the fox saw the needle is started to back away towards Naruto.

"It's okay Yuki, this lady won't hurt you. You know that." Naruto said softly, trying to calm down the fox. Hana looked on in wonder as the fox yipped and barked a few times and the blonde answered as if they understood each other.

"So wait... you understand what she is saying and the other way around?" She asked now even more curious. Naruto nodded while petting Yuki on the head.

"Yeah it's quite a long story though; she seems to have bad memories of needles and doesn't like hospitals either. Ha! I suppose she is more like me than I knew." Naruto then turned back to Yuki. "You can bite on my hand if you want to; also remember that I'm not going anywhere." The fox nodded and Hana was amazed at the deep bond between the two.

"So how long do you know each other?"

"Uhm about three days..." This got wide eyes from Hana 'only three days? Some of the pairs in our clan know each other for months and still don't trust each other so much...'

Five minutes, scared fox and a bleeding hand later Naruto was standing at the doors with Yuki back inside the backpack with only her head peeking up. In his hand was a card with all the medical information about Yuki.

"So I just have to hand this to the secretary and I Yuki will get her shinobi licence?" Naruto asked and Hana nodded her head. Naruto had a sudden thought. "Hmh before I go, do you know how I and Yuki should go about training together?" this one got her thinking 'I wonder if... it won't hurt to try...'

"You know what? Come here tomorrow at around five in the afternoon and I might be able to do something about this training." Naruto was now sporting a face splitting grin, things were getting better and better. He shouted out thanks before running out of the building. Hana stood there while shaking her head in disbelief at how he could be so serious and then suddenly become so loud and cheery. "He never even told me his name..."

Naruto got home feeling good, he handed in all the necessary papers and got a picture of Yuki taken for her own licence. Now in the eyes of the law as a 'person' with her own rights and soon she would be an ass kicking fox companion. The irony that the person who the village hated the most had a companion in the form of a fox and they were going to defend said village only made Naruto erupt in laughter. He decided to see what was sealed in the scroll that he was carrying around all this time so when he went to the 'forest of death' tomorrow he would have an idea of where to start. He rolled it out on the floor, only about a third of the whole scroll was used so anything he could use it for a lot of things in the future as well. Naruto started looking at the kanji that showed the contents of the scroll and could not help but be amazed. The first row at the top contained the theory about water, air and ice manipulation, chakra exercises and anatomy and biology books. The second row was filled with jutsus for each of those elements and of the lowest rank up to A-rank jutsu and there was also a spot with what he supposed were medical jutsu. The thought of A-rank jutsu made Naruto shiver in anticipation, by now he was not sure if he would be able to fall asleep tonight. The bottom row had kunai, shuriken, senbon needles, plants, Zabuza's sword and the stack of clothes he bought earlier. Naruto made two clones and unsealed the clothes; he ordered one of the clones to put away the clothes. He then unsealed the chakra control books since everyone always told him he lacked control. He decided to check if the kage bunshins really could speed up the training and told the other clone to start on the first one and dispel in about ten minutes to see if it works. The clone picked up the first book from a stack of three, it was called "What is chakra and how it works" 'I suppose that is a good start' he thought and went to make food while the clones got to work. All this while Yuki was lying down lazily on the couch, not really bothered by the commotion. She was nearly asleep until a strange smell hit her nose. She pushed her head up and sniffed the air before jumping off the couch and following the smell to the kitchen. She saw Naruto filling some cups with hot water when suddenly her stomach decided to call. This got Naruto's attention as he looked down and laughed at the cutely embarrassed fox.

"Well. A bit hungry, aren't we?" Yuki could only nod since the food did really smell good. "I think it is time that you taste the heavenly taste of food of the gods... Ramen!" Naruto exclaimed before placing one of the steaming cups before her. She sniffed it a couple of times before looking back up only to find Naruto right in front of her, motioning with his eyes for her to try it. She took a bite of the noodles and froze up for a second before starting to gulp the whole cup down. A few seconds later she was finished, leaving the cup swinging around before it fell over completely empty. Naruto looked at his friend with an empty expression before grinning like an idiot and laughing.

"Yosh! We have another ramen lover! If you think this is good then just wait till you eat the ramen that old-man Teuchi does!" Naruto said, still grinning before eating his own cups. He entered back into the main room of his apartment and at that exact time the clone who was reading about chakra dispelled. Naruto had to hold on to the door frame for a second as he got a tiny headache and then suddenly memories filled his head. Apparently he managed to read the first two chapters and the amazing thing is that he remembered every single thing. He sealed the books back into the scroll and seeing that he was tired and there was not much else to do he decided to go to sleep so he could wake up early tomorrow to start some proper training.

_-'Things were so much easier back then. When you look back at things you see how simple things were. It all revolved around Ramen and training and doing your best... now it is all about doing your worst because nothing less will do. I could have made better decisions but I was and am no seer...'_

Morning came quickly as the sun crept in trough the closed blinds but that is not what woke up Naruto. He was having another one of the dreams were he was the Hokage and introduced the national ramen day but then he felt something wet on his cheek and some pressure on his chest. The dream ended and he forced his eyes open only to look into the gold coloured slitted eyes of his fox companion. Yuki licked his face one last time and sat down on his chest, satisfied that he was finally awake. Naruto at first was confused but then again he wanted to get to training as early as possible. He looked at the clock near his bed and saw it six thirty in the morning. Naruto looked back to the fox and chuckled while ruffling the fur on Yuki's head.

"From now on you will be my personal alarm clock." He said before getting out of bed, picking up the new clothes and moving to the bathroom. About fifteen minutes later they both were fresh and ready to leave, Naruto had the scroll attached to a strap on the back of his flak jacket, designed specifically for scrolls and Yuki was proudly sporting the Konoha band around her neck. "So what do you say about taking a walk to Ichiraku's?"Naruto asked and Yuki felt the mischievous edge to his words, she yipped in agreement before they both headed out through the doors.

The journey to the ramen stand was quite interesting; yes interesting was the right way to call it. Some of the older people sent some glares towards Naruto and the white fox walking beside him but as soon as Yuki noticed that she just looked at them with her slitted eyes and growled loudly. This seemed to scare most of them to half death and sent them hurrying back inside their houses while the younger generation looked confused or laughed about how someone could be afraid of a small fox like that. Naruto saw one chunnin level shinobi try to ready a kunai to attack his friend but he hid it back in his holster when he saw the Konoha band around the foxes neck, he was not going to jail for attacking a shinobi companion. Naruto was brought out of his thoughts when the heavenly smell of ramen hit his and Yuki's nose. He rushed the last meters and jumped into the stand quickly followed by Yuki. Naruto took his usual seat while Yuki jumped on the one on his left. She was barely able to see over the counter but fortunately for her there was a second , lower counter underneath the proper one in case children came in and wanted to eat but were too small to reach. Soon enough Ayame came out from the back of the bar and smiled when she saw the bar's favourite customer already waiting.

"So what can I get for you today Naruto."

"Can I get the usual and one extra miso with extra beef?" Naruto said and Ayame nodded before going into the back again to get her father. About a minute later Teuchi and Ayame came in and started their cooking. Soon enough the four bowls were standing in front of Naruto. He took one for himself and to Teuchi's and Ayame's confusion he pulled another one onto the children's counter in front of the seat beside. Ayame took a glance over the counter and that is when she finally noticed Yuki tearing into the ramen. Teuchi and Naruto had to cover their ears as a scream of 'kawaii' echoed through the street and probably woke up everyone in a kilometre radius.

"Since when do you have such a cute pet?" Ayame asked and that is also the time when she finally saw the new clothes Naruto was wearing. A small blush appeared on her face. "And since when do you look so handsome?" At this Naruto started choking on his ramen while Teuchi and Ayame laughed at his reaction. Naruto cleared his throat before speaking.

"Some stuff happened during our last mission and I decided that it was time for change and this here is my companion, Yuki" Naruto explained without telling any mission details. Yuki yipped and swished her tail while Naruto heard her say 'Hi'. Ayame giggled at the cute fox before going back to preparing ingredients for the rest of the day. After saying goodbye the duo started moving towards training ground forty four. Naruto had a rough idea of where it was placed since he knew most of the village map off by heart after all the escapes after his pranks and mobs chases. Since Yuki could only move so fast without proper training it took them twenty minutes to make it there. Before they got here Naruto never really thought why it was called 'the forest of death' but now he had a vague idea. It was a huge, dark forest surrounded by a tall bone white wall that Naruto suspected was supposed to keep things inside instead of keeping people out. Naruto scooped up Yuki into his arms and made his way over the wall and into the forest in search of a nice clearing preferably with a water supply so he could start training water walking and later water manipulation. The trees didn't seem to end and barely any sunlight entered through the thick foliage making the place really gloomy. Naruto at some point reached the end of the tree line and jumped into a clearing about the size of the training ground that he used with team seven. Three edges were touching the forest while the fourth had a medium sized river running across it. The place was perfect. He walked up to one of the trees near the river and placed Yuki and the scroll down in the shade. He turned around but had to suddenly stop when he felt a kunai pressed against his neck. Yuki was on full alert and was growling at the person who was behind Naruto. Naruto was doing his best to keep his cool but it is hard when someone could kill you in one small movement. The person decided to finally speak.

"What are you doing in my forest? Hmh? Surely such a young gaki would not be looking for me, now would he?" She purred out the last part. Now Naruto was confused. The first part sounded like a threat and how is it her forest and the second part she sounded seductive. It just did not add up but since she spoke then it would not hurt to answer.

"I asked the Hokage to point me to a place where I could train in peace and quiet." Naruto answered truthfully, then he remembered ojiisan telling him that there is a kunoichi who also uses this training ground. "I suppose you are this kunoichi that he mentioned." Naruto added and felt the kunai release the hold on his neck; he relaxed slightly and turned around to see who took him 'hostage' just a second ago. He was surprised at what he saw; to be honest he did not expect any ninja to wear something like this at all. She looked less than ten years older than he is; she had dark hair tied into a spiky ponytail and was wearing a quite revealing mesh body suit, on top of which there was a tan trench coat and a dark orange miniskirt. Anko smirked as she saw the blonde haired gaki look over her but when his eyes were back to her face she was disappointed that he showed nearly no emotion at all. Naruto didn't show anything because he was still scared of this crazy woman and decided that checking out how she reacted to him blushing or anything was a bad idea.

"So the Hokage sent you here? I wonder why? Anyway you can stay here but remember to not get killed." Naruto's eyebrow shot up at that, he had the feeling this place was dangerous but killed? "My name is Anko by the way."

"Naruto Uzumaki" Naruto nodded and she was about to jump off back into the forest but Naruto remembered that Hokage told him to ask that certain kunoichi about something. "The Hokage told me that you could help me with a problem. I need someone to train me in Kenjutsu but as you probably know I don't really have anyone to ask." Anko stopped mid turn and thought for a second before turning fully. Just before she jumped into the trees she said.

"I might know someone who would help you, I will come back before you leave and if you can impress me then I will think about it." And she disappeared into the forest. Naruto sighed and went back to the scroll; Yuki was sitting there with a look that said 'what the hell was that all about?' Naruto shook his head before answering.

"I don't know Yuki, I don't know."

Meanwhile Anko sitting on a branch observing the blonde while thinking 'So that is the Kyuubi brat. Hmh I wonder what he manages to do today if what Hokage-sama said about him is true. I will ask Yugao-chan about training the brat later today.' Naruto oblivious to Anko's presence started unsealing everything he needed for the next couple of hours. He would pick one book or scroll about chakra control and one about each of the chakra manipulations for four clones to read, next he would set two on completely mastering tree walking while four started on the water walking exercise he read about yesterday. He himself would start reading through the different jutsu that are available to him and choose which one to start with. Anko watched as Naruto made a single handsign and made ten clones who immediately scattered and started doing different things like reading or chakra exercises 'so he was saying the truth when he said that the gaki knows how to do the kage Bunshin and he also has enough chakra to make ten of them and still stand, that's impressive enough.'

It was about four hours later that the clones doing the exercises started running out of chakra and started dispelling one by one. Naruto was brought out of his reading when he felt memories flood his brain. He closed the scroll he was reading at the moment and positioned himself in front of the tree and to his surprise he was able to effortlessly walk up and down at any pace he wanted. The release of chakra and measuring how much he released also felt much easier meaning that his control got better. He went over all the memories and saw that the clones doing water walking had managed to make a step or two before falling down. He made his way to the river and placed his foot on the water. To his pleasure he did not sink. Couple seconds later he was walking across the surface, it would take more practice to be able to run and jump but this was a step in the right direction. From her perch in the tree Anko's eyes were open wide as if she just saw a free plate of dango. The brat managed to walk on water after only four hours; something like this was nearly unheard of. Naruto walked back to where the scroll was and Yuki was sleeping. The four clones were finished with their literature and just to be careful Naruto ordered them to dispel one at a time while he assimilated the memories. First was chakra control, a minute later water manipulation followed by wind and ice. In the end Naruto had to lay down to get his thoughts together. One thing that stuck out was that the ice scrolls were written by Haku himself. In there he wrote that the Hyōton bloodline required very good chakra control to be able to create and manipulate the small ice particles to a usable level. Haku also wrote that he assumed that the bloodline itself granted better than normal control 'so that is why back in wave making clones and travelling felt so much easier'. Naruto now knowing what to do next made a new batch of twenty clones. Ten went straight to the river to practice water walking and water manipulation at once while the other ten picked a leaf each and started on wind manipulation.

A shout of pure joy woke up Anko after she fell asleep in the tree. She looked down on the field and saw one of the clones dancing around. Anko was not sure what just happened but assumed that it was not worth her attention and so she went back to her sleep. Down at the field Naruto was trying to calm the clone down but after he could not for over three minutes the clone got to meet Naruto's fist on a personal level. The clone poofed out of existence while the other ones cringed at how he was dispelled and went back to their work. Naruto stood still, sorting through the memories and realised why the clone was so happy. He was the first one to get anywhere with the wind manipulation. The cut was nowhere near clean or even close to straight. Instead it looked as if the leaf was ripped in half and that was after an hour of focusing but it was progress.

Yuki finally woke up from her slumber, she looked around and found that Naruto was sitting down beside her and was reading yet another scroll. She took a look at the sky and thought back to when they were supposed to meet that human girl from yesterday 'hmh... think her name was Hana' They had about an hour left so she stood and nudge Naruto in the leg before yipping at him.

"Naruto, aren't we supposed to meet... Hana, soon?" Naruto broke his eyes away from the text and looked confused before a look of slight panic crossed his face. He started grabbing the books and scrolls and piling them up so he could seal them up. Yuki tried to get his attention to tell him that they had more than an hour left but he just wouldn't listen. Annoyed with being ignored she took a bite at his leg which immediately got his mind out of whatever he was doing.

"Ooouch, what was that for?" Naruto whined. The wound wasn't deep in the first place and was gone in a matter of seconds but still, why would Yuki bite him.

"Sorry, I was trying to get your attention but you wouldn't listen. We got more than an hour left so calm down." Naruto sighed, he really panicked at the thought they might be late. If it was about him or his safety then being late would not matter much but he had to do his best to help out his close circle of friends. Seeing that he might as well see how far the clones got he told them to dispel in pairs with a minute interval.

The continuous popping sound woke Anko up. She quietly cursed whoever woke her up but then remembered that she was sleeping on a branch and was supposed to be watching how the gaki is doing. Apparently she chose the right time to wake up as the final clones dispelled and he was now standing still and was gathering the memories of the clones. Naruto took off at high speed towards the water and started running on top of it as if it was normal ground, he did some flips and jumps to test his control out and found it to be like second nature. He tried to manipulate the current of the water but found it to be still too hard but nothing that training could not fix. He went back under the tree and picked up a leaf. He held it in his hands for about five minutes and managed to split it two. The split was not perfect but he would worry about it tomorrow. His chakra felt even more under control than ever before. He was grinning like a madman at what he accomplished today and was about to pick up the fully loaded scroll until he heard slow clapping. He turned around only to see the same kunoichi from before walking towards him.

"I'm impressed gaki. To be honest I have never seen anyone get water walking down to this level in a day. Come here tomorrow morning at eight and I will be waiting for you with someone to help you out. Now get out of my forest before I change my mind." Naruto still could not believe how she could change between nice, seductive and mindless killer attitudes seemingly at will. She seemed nice enough though and was willing to help him so who was he to judge.

"Hai Anko-san." Naruto said. He wasn't sure how to address her without angering her. She waved him saying to just call her Anko since she did not like honorifics 'I already like her' Naruto thought and outside he grinned. He placed the scroll on his back, picked up Yuki and disappeared into the tree line.

"What did I just get myself into..." Anko said to no one in particular and started moving towards Konoha to get herself a drink and then find Yugao and maybe Kurenai and Hana and take them out to the bar.

Naruto skidded to a stop in front of the compound again and placed Yuki on the ground. The guard seemed to remember him from yesterday and let him trough. When walking down to the clinic he saw the curious looks that the Inuzuka clan members were giving Yuki. A nin-fox was not something seen very commonly or at all to be honest. Dogs and cats were rare enough but this was new. Yuki seeing the looks threw her head up and tried to look as proud as she could. This made Naruto chuckle and he was not the only one that found it amusing. Soon he was standing in front of the clinic but before he stepped inside he heard someone running in his direction. He turned his head and saw Hana stop just beside him. She smiled seeing that Yuki was not walking beside him and not hiding in some bag.

"Good that you are here early, I have some good news for you but you need to meet someone first." Hana then motioned for Naruto to follow her as she made her way to one of the Inuzuka training grounds located in the back of the compound. As they got nearer Naruto could make out a figure of a woman sitting on one of the training posts while beside her was sitting quite a large... dog... wolf... Naruto wasn't completely sure which.

Tsume wasn't sure what to think when Hana told her that some blonde kid came in the day before and registered a fox as his companion. Then she heard of the deep bond after such a tiny amount of time together and add the fact that the brat could speak with the fox. It was all just hard to believe, then Hana told her mother that the boy asked if she knew how he could train together with his companion. Tsume considered all the options and thoughts that crossed her mind and in the end came to the conclusion that if everything Hana said was true then this was something extraordinary and she would train the boy himself if she could.

Naruto, Hana and Yuki were now standing in front of Tsume and Kuromaru. Hana saw that Naruto wasn't sure what to do and decided to help him; she motioned to her mother with her eyes as a sign for her to start out the conversation. Tsume looked over the boy 'Of course he wouldn't know how to behave properly, after all with the Kyuubi he probably can count all the people he spoke with more than once on his fingers...' she then grinned which made Naruto feel even more nervous 'But we Inuzukas don't care about manners anyway so'

"So you are that brat Hana told me about yesterday?" Tsume said a bit loudly to Naruto, he only nodded. "A bit shy I see. Well get over it and tell me what is your name."

Naruto felt that he could relax more around here since no one held a grudge against him.

"Uzumaki Naruto and this is Yuki" Naruto said with a grin and then motioned towards the white fox. Tsume grinned again seeing that the boy's actual character was slowly coming out. She nodded while Kuromaru was eyeing the fox, he did not like foxes just like any other dog but he could see that this one had potential just like the boy and he felt that Tsume was thinking the same.

"So Hana told me that you are looking for someone to train your partner. Could you tell me why?" the answer would show if he was worthy to teach.

"I assume you know how the village is with foxes." Naruto asked and Tsume nodded. "Well when I found her I knew I could not leave her so I took her with me back to Konoha but here another problem presents itself. I had a feeling that one day the villagers would do something to her because they could not do anything to me. I made her a nin-fox and now the law protects her in a sense but it still is not enough, I want to make sure that even when I'm not there that she will be safe." Naruto finished. Yuki barked a couple of times adding her own part. "And she says that she wants to help me out in the field and not just sit at home all day." Now everyone was grinning. It seemed that everyone in this group had this in common. The large grin showing off the razor sharp canines that made others shiver in slight fear.

"So you can actually speak with her?" Tsume asked as an afterthought. All she got was a 'yup' from Naruto. She already knew that the boy would be getting training but from whom... 'Now that is a good idea.'

"Fine brat, you got your training." At this Naruto whooped in joy together with Yuki. "And you Hana are finally getting this time off the clinic duty that you were begging for." Tsume finished with a smirk. Hana at first was happy but then realised what just happened. She was going to be the one training with Naruto and Yuki. Naruto managed to calm himself down.

"So what time should I get here and do I need to be here all the time since I am already getting training from someone else in the mornings." Naruto asked as he remembered that Anko is bringing someone to teach him Kenjutsu.

"Hmh we can't teach you that much until your partner is up to shape so drop her off tomorrow at seven in the morning and then come back around two, then you will be doing some teamwork and such." Tsume answered and seeing that everything was set and done shunshined out of the area to the council meeting that the Hokage called for an hour beforehand. Naruto made small mental notes to remember the times and shouted his goodbye to Hana while running towards his home together with Yuki. On the way home they stopped at Ichiraku's for dinner which made a small dent in gama-chan's reserves of cash since they both were quite hungry. At Naruto's apartment Yuki went straight to sleep while Naruto stayed up for a while. He looked through the other books sealed in the scroll and selected the ones that he would set the clones on reading tomorrow.

Meanwhile the village council gathered inside the meeting hall. Sarutobi was sitting at the Hokage desk in front of the semi circular seating area that held the rest of the council. On the left sat all the clan heads while the right held the civilian section of the council. In the very middle sat the village elders consisting of Hiruzen's old teammates and the warhawk Danzo. He eyed the seats to see if anyone was missing and just at this moment Tsume shunshined into her seat. The whole council was whispering on about the purpose of the meeting but quieted down when the Hokage cleared his throat.

"You all are probably wondering why I gathered you all in the middle of the week." Hiruzen asked and most of the members nodded. "Well, with pleasure I have to say that we have a new bloodline in Konoha." Sarutobi said and waited for the shouting to start. As expected the civilian side exploded into 'who is it?' and 'what sort of bloodline is it?' The elders and the clan heads sat there quietly, knowing that the sandaime will speak when it is quiet. "QUIET!" Sarutobi was seriously fed up with those damn civilians. They never knew when to just shut up. "You all know this person pretty well. His name is Uzumaki Naruto." Some of the clan heads were quite surprised while Tsume grinned. The civilian council was quiet for a second before erupting into even louder shouting than before but now they were divided between 'put him into the CRA' and 'execute him'. Sarutobi's eye twitched in annoyance. This was just unbelievable. He stood up and turned to the civilian council. "Every single one of you get out of here! If you can't stay quiet then you can't stay at all. This is shinobi business so you don't have any say in this either way." He said, seeping some killer intent in the air. It was enough to make some of the shinobi shiver lightly while the civilians scrambled out through the small doors.

Hiruzen sat back down and saw Danzo stand up. Danzo was about to speak but Hiruzen was faster. "And no Danzo. I'm not putting Naruto in one of your 'youth centres' as you call them. Danzo was angry but did not show it, instead he sat back down. Another chance slipped his fingers but not completely, he could still get his hands on the fox and that new bloodline. "Now that everyone is quiet I can finally reveal some details. Naruto gained the bloodline in an event during his recent missions. From what he explained it is called Hyōton and allows the user to combine water and wind. That is all I know. Now that this is over, any questions before I call this meeting?" The room remained silent; the Hokage nodded and spoke again. "I call this meeting closed. Next meeting is again at the end of the week. Dismissed." Some of the clan heads shunshined out while the other just walked through the doors. Tsume approached the Hokage but again he beat her to speak first. "I saw everything through my crystal ball and I approve. Maybe your training will help him with his... tenant." Tsume nodded and shunshined back to the compound.

Naruto woke up feeling better than ever. For the past few days everything seemed to go right for the first time in his life. It's as if whoever governed what was happening down here on earth was now repaying him for all those times he suffered. He pushed those depressing thoughts away and got up from the bed and started his usual routine. He rushed out of the house and after a really early breakfast at Ichiraku's he dropped off Yuki with Hana. He was quite surprised when he learned she was the one that is going to be training with him. Naruto then took the rooftops and soon enough was jumping through the trees of training ground forty four. When he reached the clearing that he used the previous day Anko was already waiting for him together with some anbu. The anbu's back was turned so he could not see the mask, only the long purple hair 'long purple hair, I wonder if...' Ha landed in front of the two kunoichis and the anbu turned around. Naruto grinned when he saw the mask.

_-'I remember her being so happy back then, her and Hayate. Both were good ninja and she helped me far beyond that training. She should have had a happy ending but it was yet another person I lost...'_

"Hi Neko-san, didn't see you in a long time."

"Hello Naruto-kun, we had lots of missions in the headquarters so I did not have much time." The cat masked anbu replied. Anko was confused; she did not like being confused.

"Wait, you know this brat?" She asked her friend. Neko nodded while Naruto explained.

"Neko-san used to follow me around and guard me for over a year, she was always really nice to me and was the only anbu that actually talked to me." Anko raised an eyebrow at the fact that the brat had anbu guards following him for such long periods of time. Neko turned to Naruto before taking off her mask.

"My actual name is Yugao and I will be teaching you Kenjutsu from today on Naruto-kun."

**To Be Continued...**


	4. Playing with ice

"That's awesome Nek...Yugao-san!" Naruto shouted while pumping his hand in the air. "Before we start anything, do you want to see why I wanted to learn Kenjutsu?" he asked with a small smirk. He had a vague idea that anyone who liked using weapons would be ecstatic to see one of the swords of the swordsman of the mist. Yugao and Anko shared a look before they both nodded. Neither was expecting much, maybe a katana or ninjato like most ninja who learn Kenjutsu. What neither expected is for Naruto to unseal a giant cleaver that was a bit taller than the blonde himself. Naruto wanted to laugh at their expressions of pure shock. "This is Kubikiribōchō; it belonged to Zabuza Momochi who was one of the seven swordsmen of the mist." Everyone has heard of the swordsman of the mist and their swords but seeing one meant that you were one of them or you were about to die. Yugao finally shook out of her shock; she walked up to the blade and ran her hand down it to see if it was the real deal. She looked back to Naruto who was waiting for her to say something.

"Naruto as payment for your training I want you to tell me how you met one of the swordsman and as for your training, I have to say that to get your strength and stamina up to the point where you can use the sword for longer amounts of time and to learn a proper style that will utilise the swords special qualities it might take months." Yugao said and saw the slightly disappointed look on the boy's face which quickly turned into that of pure determination with a hint of sadness.

"It was his dying wish for me to learn how to use it and take care of it and that is what I will do, no matter how long it will take." Naruto vowed which made Yugao and Anko smile. Naruto then thought for a second 'wait if she is an anbu then won't she have missions and stuff?' He decided to voice his question. Yugao smiled again seeing that the boy was behaving better and was more aware of what was going on than when she saw him last.

"Normally I would have but I have been taking a lot of missions for the past few months and now I got a month of vacation." The whole group had a suspicion that a certain Hokage had a hand in all of this but it did not really matter either way. "So from today on until the end of the week I will be training you from eight in the morning until one since you apparently have training with Hana-chan in the afternoons." Yugao finished, Naruto stared for a moment before he came to a small conclusion.

"So wait, you two know Hana?" He asked and Yugao and Anko nodded not sure where he was going with it. Naruto sighed. "Now I know for sure that ojiisan had a hand in all of this..." He muttered under his nose but both kunoichis heard him.

"Who is this ojiisan?" Anko asked and it was Yugao who answered and not Naruto.

"Naruto is talking about the Hokage, he never was one for paying respect until as he says 'it is earned'" Anko grinned, the brat had balls. She had to hand it him. Anko said her goodbyes before disappearing into the forest to do whatever she does most of the day. Naruto turned to Yugao while leaning against the sword.

"So Yugao-_sensei_ what do we start with?" Naruto asked with a playful but slightly mocking tone at the sensei part. Yugao turned towards him and looked into his eyes. He did not like this look, not one bit. It promised pain. Before things got too far he put his hands up in defence and said that he had to do one thing before they started. He picked up the scroll and made a single handsign. This time thirty clones appeared. Yugao watched as one of the clones picked up the scroll before going near the river, unsealing books and scrolls from the scroll and handing them out to some of the bunshins. Some started reading while others went off to practice what looked like elemental manipulation. Yugao heard from Anko how Naruto trained the day before and how far he got in such a short amount of time but it was a different thing to see it with her own eyes. Now that he was finished with setting up his own training she could start the tortu...training programme of her own.

Naruto was laying face down in the grass, barely able to breathe. He always remembered Neko as a nice and gentle woman but here during their training she was a slave driver with no room for compromise. She made him run laps of the whole forest and if Anko saw that he was slowing down while she was doing her own patrol she would send one of her snakes summons to 'motivate' him. Then came all the other physical exercises meant to increase his speed, agility and strength which he would all need to wield Kubikiribōchō. If he did not die during a mission then this training would surely kill him one day, or one of the snakes will actually eat him when he slips on a branch.

"Are you tired already Naruto-kun? Are you giving up so easily?" Yugao knew how to get him motivated. That short sentence made him shoot up from the ground and say stuff about never giving up. She really missed that cheery attitude of his. "Seeing that you are so full of energy we can start on teaching you some basic katas for the style you will use with Kubikiribōchō." She then reached into one of her pockets and took out a scroll. From it she unsealed a wooden training katana. "This training sword has seals applied on it that will increase its weight; we will start small and build up the weight until you will be able to lift the real thing." She then threw the sword to Naruto who caught it quite effortlessly. He was tired and a bit sore but he would not disappoint those who wanted to help him. Yugao went on to show him the proper grip and then instructed him on the basic hand and feet movements. Naruto then started practicing on his own while she watched and corrected his posture and other small mistakes.

The training was soon over and Naruto started dispelling his clones in threes. When he sorted through the memories he found that the clones that were working on wind manipulation succeeded in cutting the leaf while the ones working on water manipulation were really close to completing the first stage. He also found himself knowing the theory behind senbon needle throwing and some things about anatomy. Naruto and Yugao parted ways with Yugao going back to Konoha for patrol duty while Naruto was jumping towards the Inuzuka compound to get some training with Yuki and Hana.

Hana was now sitting down on the same training ground on which her mother talked with Naruto the day before. Her own dogs, the three Haimaru brothers, were training with the fox. At first Yuki was somewhat scared of the dogs but they quickly got over the fox vs. dog grudge and were doing quite well. Now she was only waiting for Naruto to arrive. She was about to get up to call her dogs back but stopped when she heard someone call her name. It was Naruto; he was running and was visibly tired.

"I'm... sorry... that... I'm late..." Naruto said in between the panting as he was bent over with hands on his knees and was trying to catch his breath.

"Don't worry Naruto; Yuki just finished her training with my own companions." Just then out of the nearby bushes ran out Yuki, followed by the Haimaru brothers. She ran up to Hana before falling straight down on the ground, breathing heavily. Naruto smiled and got on his knees in front of his partner.

"I see you also got a workout today, eh Yuki?" He said and all he got was a small nod. Hana smiled at the situation, he really did care about his friend and the fox wasn't doing that bad. She about the same age as most nin-dogs are when they started proper training and she was able to keep up most of the time. Naruto looked over at the tree dogs sitting around Hana. What caught his attention was that all three were identical looking. He also wondered how did those dogs could grow so much larger than a normal dog would. "Hana, I have a question."

"Go on." She answered while giving him a curious look. She saw him looking at the dogs and had an idea of what the question would be.

"How is it that all the dogs of the Inuzuka clan grow so large and can actually keep up with most ninja?" Hana thought about and it was actually a good question to ask, most people outside of the clan had no idea about it even though it wasn't a very guarded secret.

"It's all in the food. Once a day they are given a special kind of chakra enhanced food which actually develops their own chakra systems. That is why they are faster, bigger and can use collaboration techniques with us but keep it a quiet since it is sort of a clan secret." Naruto nodded, he knew that keeping secrets was important; after all he was keeping one for all of his life. He then started thinking if maybe he could ask for her to show him how to make it or something but was not sure if that was proper since it's a clan secret. Hana saw the small inside fight that Naruto had and she suspected the reason. "Its fine Naruto I will show you how to make it later today since both of you are probably too tired for serious training. My mother already got permission for us to teach you everything and anything we want." She saw that he was really happy. It's as if no one did anything for him ever before. "Now then, let's get on with our training." Hana said and the whole group moved further into the training grounds.

At first Hana outlined everything that they would be doing for the week and then later on after some time table was set that did not interfere with his team training. Naruto felt a tinge of anger and disappointment when he thought about his team. Kakashi never thought them anything and his teammates did not care for him. It really was a miracle they all were still alive. Hana then got him doing teamwork exercises that were similar to the ones that Kakashi did with team seven but this time his partner was happily working with him. After they were done with a round of those Hana showed had a small spar with him and saw how horrible his taijutsu was. When she asked him why it was so bad he told her that this is exactly how he was taught to do it back in the academy. Again Hana was slightly surprised but went on to show the basic stances of the feral fighting style of the Inuzuka clan. She was surprised at how fast he grasped the basic; it was as if he had it in his blood and she started wondering if he wasn't part Inuzuka. For the last hour she instructed him on making the special food, where to get the ingredients and how to channel your chakra into it. They said their goodbyes and went their own ways. Naruto has never felt this tired from training, ever. It was around eight now that he and Yuki got back to his apartment after eating a late dinner at Ichiraku's. As soon as they got inside they both fell on the bed and were asleep as soon as their heads touched the pillows.

That same regiment went on for the rest of the week. In the morning he would drop Yuki to train with Hana while he would train Kenjutsu with Yugao while his clones practiced senbon throwing and elemental manipulation. He knew that he would be able to learn some jutsu by now but he wanted to have both wind and water manipulation up to a high standard so he could start on ice. He wasn't about to skip any steps. After only a week of training in Kenjutsu Naruto was now able to lift Kubikiribōchō and do some of the katas he had learned for about three to four minutes before his hands started giving out. The sword was really heavy but there was progress. On the second day Yugao brought him training weights to help him train at all times, no matter what he was doing. Anko would sometimes come along and 'help out' as she called but Naruto didn't see how a snake chasing after him while he was dodging kunai was helping him. From two to seven he would train with Hana, Yuki and the Haimaru brothers. Yuki after the training and the special food started growing faster than any other dog Hana had seen before and she had no idea why. Naruto had a growing suspicion that perhaps it was the ever-present Kyuubi chakra that flowed and mixed with his own in small amounts at all times. Right now she was double the size she was than when they started out and was actually starting to look threatening. Now she stood at about sixty centimetres tall and was able to keep up with the Haimaru brothers for much longer than when they started out. Naruto knew that tomorrow he would have to go back to his team but he wanted to continue his own training. He decided that the best way to approach this was to pay a visit to the Hokage.

The secretary was slowly sipping her tea, there were no more appointments for today and soon she would be able to go home. The blonde that came here nearly every day to visit the Hokage stopped coming for the past week. She liked the boy even though almost everyone else who worked in the tower hated him but sometimes he could get on her nerves. She was about to take another sip of the tea when something stormed just in front of her desk. She was so frightened that she spilled the tea onto the stack of paperwork that she spent over two hours sorting and filling in. She looked up to see who it was and obviously it was Naruto, although his clothes changed it was still him. She wanted to be angry but knew there was no point and without words just waved him into the Hokage's office so she could try to salvage some of the documents and try to dry them off or something.

Naruto walked up to the wooden doors and knocked three times. He entered when he heard Hiruzen call out for him to come in. Naruto walked up to the desk and sat down in the chair while Yuki took the spot on the couch in the back of the room. The Hokage was reading some documents but smiled when he saw that it was Naruto who was sitting in front of him. 'Hmh he really did change' He then scanned the room for the white fox and was surprised to find Yuki sleeping stretched out on the couch, the fox was twice the size than a week ago but then he remembered that Naruto was training with the Inuzuka's.

"Hello Naruto, I see that you changed your appearance." Naruto grinned.

"Yup! I thought it was time for change and this fits my new abilities more I believe." The Hokage nodded. Obviously the colour theme was based on water, ice and snow.

"So what brings you here today?" Naruto's face changed to a serious expression and Hiruzen knew that it was something important.

"Today was my last day of the week long vacation and I will have to return to doing the 'team' training from tomorrow on." The Hokage nodded and slowly saw where this was heading. "During this one week I learned more than I did during my years in the academy and all the time I spent _'training'_with Kakashi." The Hokage knew that Naruto had a hard time in the academy and that Kakashi wasn't the best teacher but it wasn't this bad. Surely.

"Now Naruto-kun I'm sure that it is not as bad as you are saying it is." Naruto shook his head.

"It is ojiisan, the academy is old times and somewhat my fault but the only thing Kakashi taught us was 'teamwork' exercises and tree walking. The tree walking was as you know during the mission in wave." Hiruzen made a note to have a talk with Kakashi again about how he handled his team, this really was unacceptable. "I wanted to ask if I could continue my training with Yugao-san and Hana-chan." Hiruzen thought for a moment, the week he spent with the Inuzuka's and with Yugao and Anko in the forest really did him good and it seemed that even if he told Naruto that he would have to train with his teammates then it would not work well anyway.

"To say the truth Naruto there is nothing stopping you from doing so."

"Huh?" Naruto was slightly confused, wasn't it obligatory to come to team training?

"What I'm saying is that you are only obliged to show up to do any missions I assign you. The team training is optional but most genin do it since they do not have any other teachers." Hiruzen finished and poofed out a cloud of smoke from his pipe. Naruto nodded, it did make sense since some of genin from the clan were sometimes absent from the academy and were studying at home with their clans. The same probably happened with genin teams. Naruto beamed with happiness at the fact that he could continue his training with Hana, Yugao and Anko.

"Thanks ojiisan!" Naruto called out and walked towards the door. Yuki seeing that they were leaving stood up and was right behind Naruto.

"Good luck Naruto." Hokage said before going back to his paperwork. Naruto nodded and went out the doors. He and Yuki quickly left the tower and went back to the apartment, tomorrow would be a tough day since he would have a meeting with his team and he had a feeling that it won't go well.

Naruto knew that Kakashi won't show up until around ten anyway so he went to Hana and Yugao and told them how it is going to work. They agreed to set up a new training time table tomorrow morning when Naruto would know when he had to do missions with his team. Naruto then paid a visit to Ichiraku's and then took his time walking to team sevens training ground.

Naruto arrived at the training grounds to see the same picture as he always did before. Sasuke was leaning against a tree while the dejected Sakura was leaning against another tree nearby, waiting for another chance to ask him out. Yuki once asked him why he liked her so much after he told her about his teammates and other people he knew in the village and he honestly could not say. He suspected that he felt that if he won over the biggest Sasuke fangirl then it would count as an accomplishment of sorts but he knew that this was so wrong that he just dismissed. After not seeing her for over a week the crush disappeared. He walked up to the wooden bridge situated at the training grounds and leaned against the railing, Yuki laid down beside him and now they would wait for Kakashi to appear. Neither Sasuke nor Sakura seemed to notice that he had arrived or they just did not care, he didn't. They surely heard him but he nearly always came late so they didn't bother to look up. The next ten minutes were spent in silence until Kakashi appeared in a cloud of smoke.

"Yo." Kakashi said with his usual eye-smile. He looked at his genin 'Sakura got dejected by Sasuke again; Sasuke is brooding under a tree and Naruto...' His eye widened when it set on Naruto. His clothes completely changed and beside him was sitting a pretty big fox.

"Naruto?" Kakashi called out to make sure. Naruto turned his head lazily towards his _sensei_ and waited for him to continue. When Sakura and Sasuke heard their dobe teammates name being called out they looked towards him and they were shocked as well. Sasuke didn't show it but Sakura had wide eyes not believing that this was the Naruto they knew. Naruto ignored them and walked up to Kakashi.

"Kakashi I need to talk with you about something." Naruto said in a voice that showed that what he wanted to say was for Kakashi's ears only. Kakashi nodded and they both moved to the other side of the bridge. Sakura still could not believe that this was Naruto, the name Naruto and the person that she just saw just could not fit together in her head. Sasuke smirked seeing her frustration and went back to planning his training for the rest of the day.

"So what did you want to talk about Naruto?" Kakashi said while reading his orange book.

"During which time are we going to be doing missions as a team?" Naruto asked and Kakashi looked up from his book, he wasn't expecting this kind of question.

"Well just like before, we will be doing d-ranks between one and four unless we get a c-rank but after our mission in wave I don't expect to get a c-rank for a week or two at least. Why are you asking?"

"I just wanted to say then that I won't be joining the team for training. I must come for the missions so I will come here every day for the three hours and then leave. Just wanted to inform you and before you say that I can't do this, I can. I asked the Hokage and he confirmed it." Now Kakashi was out of things to say, he never expected to hear this from any of his possible students and definitely not from Naruto. Before he could answer Naruto was already on the other side of the bridge, sitting down and talking with the fox. Kakashi sighed and walked towards his students so they could get on with some teamwork training and then their missions.

_-'I sometimes wondered what he thought back then. Maybe he still thought that I would come back in a week or so...Why did he give up so easily, despite everything he knew... he had to have known...'_

For the whole day Naruto stayed unusually quiet. He finished every order and did everything he was told without question. When the team went to do their batch of d-ranks Naruto started using shadow clones to a great effect and so they managed to finish twice the amount than they normally would. Neither Kakashi nor Sakura knew how to behave around this new Naruto so they too stayed quiet. Sakura for some reason felt somewhat disappointed when Naruto did not ask her out in the morning or before they went their separate ways. Naruto went straight towards his training spot in the forest of death. Today he would try his hand at ice manipulation. According to the scrolls that Haku wrote his control and wind and water manipulation was up to the point where he should be able to channel Hyōton chakra.

Naruto was now standing over a small pool of still water. The first step was to freeze not moving water and then move onto water that moved faster and faster up to the point where with lots of chakra and good control it would be possible to freeze a waterfall according to Haku's theories. Haku wrote that there was nothing to be explained about channelling ice chakra specifically, it just happened with focus and practice. One just had to imagine the water and the cold air cooling it to the point of freezing. Naruto put his hands on top of the surface of the still water, sending small ripples across its surface. This was something he wanted to do himself and later he would master with clones. After thirty minutes of nothing happening Naruto was slowly getting annoyed. He was more patient than before and could read books if they were about something that interesting but sitting still for prolonged periods of time and focusing was still beyond him. He was about to give and take his hands out of the water when he started feeling colder, as if a cool breeze passed over him. He looked down at the water and saw that a centimetre wide but thin sheet of ice formed an outline around his hands. He grinned like mad and went back to work.

The next two weeks went by really fast for Naruto and Yuki. They spent most of it training with Yugao, Anko and Hana. Each morning Yuki would go to train with Hana while Naruto would train with Yugao. At one they would do missions with team seven and then they both would go to train with Hana and the Haimaru brothers. During this time Naruto managed to learn with the aid of the kage bunshins learned a couple techniques from the water and wind element but found that he still needed more practice with Hyōton to use it effectively in a fight. The one jutsu that he wanted to learn were the crystal ice mirrors but so far they were still out of his reach. What he found was that if he channelled ice chakra to his hands during taijutsu fights then even glancing blows left nasty burns on the skin. Normally that would use up the ninja's chakra reserves really fast but Naruto wasn't normal after all. Yuki had grown some more before seemingly stopping. Right now she was a bit smaller than the Haimaru brothers which meant that in a standing position she reached above Naruto's waistline. Her chakra coils also developed to the point where she could travel across the rooftops with Naruto in ten minute bursts.

Now Naruto was leaning against the same bridge. Kakashi told them that he had a small announcement to tell them today and that there would be no training or missions that day. Team seven was patiently waiting for their jonin-sensei to arrive. Since Naruto's change in attitude and him only coming for missions the team slowly drifted apart even more that it had before. Naruto was the only thing holding it together and now that he was not here or he did not care everything seemed to roll downhill. During last week Sasuke also stopped coming for the training and Kakashi had no choice but to train Sakura alone. When he voiced the proposition of helping her catch up to the others she refused saying that she is going to train with her 'Sasuke-kun'. 'I wonder how that went' Kakashi thought as he shunshined onto the bridge. He called over for everyone and started speaking.

"This year's chunnin exams are starting next week, here are the application forms. Fill them in and hand them in to the academy in exactly seven days. Rest of the details are on the other side of the sheet. Ja ne!" as soon as he appeared he was also gone. The only thing the three genin had were the application forms and lots of unanswered questions.

**To Be Continued...**


	5. There is still hope

As soon as he left the training ground, Kakashi appeared in the Hokage's office. Hiruzen looked up from the report he was reading at that moment. He took the pipe out of his mouth.

"Do you really think that it was wise to let them enter the exams? You said yourself that their teamwork is nonexistent." Kakashi knew that what the sandaime just said was true. The thing is that he had no idea how to fix this mess.

"I really don't know... the exams will either start bringing them together and I'm sure that if they got past their differences and their own faults then they would get very far but if it doesn't work then they will drift apart even more." Kakashi said with a downcast look.

"That would mean that we would have to disband the team and they would have to wait until next year for the next batch of genin." Hiruzen finished. What they were doing was very risky but it was the only way out. Either they would start working together or they would go their own ways. He heard Kakashi sigh for the first time in a long time.

"I wish sensei was here, he would know what to do." Kakashi said as he looked out the window, towards the village. Hiruzen could only nod as he drew from his pipe again.

Meanwhile Sasuke was beating on a training dummy inside the uchicha compound. He had very mixed feelings and he was not sure what to make of them. All of them were directed towards his teammate, Naruto. He remembered how when they were small, before the... massacre they were somewhat friends. Then in academy they were rivals of sorts. During the mission in wave something happened. It's as if he was feeling threatened that he was not the strongest one anymore but before he could even admit to those thoughts the uchicha pride, drilled into him by his father, kicked in. No. Naruto was a dobe, the idiot and dead last and no matter what he did he could never surpass someone with the strongest of the bloodlines but no matter, Sasuke could use him as a stepping stone to reaching his goal.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto was now walking down the village with nothing to do. He was getting bored out of his mind and he could not really train. Anko told him that he won't be allowed into the forest for the next week. After looking down at the form in his hands he quickly came to a conclusion. 'One of the exams will be held inside the forest.' He grinned at the thought. After all the time spent inside there he knew most of it off by heart and Yuki knew it even better. With her enhanced senses and being a fox and everything she was sort of in her natural habitat and after she visited the place a couple of times she knew her way nearly as well as Anko did. Naruto was brought out of his thoughts when he heard a growl; he turned to Yuki to see her glare at a boy around eight. From the posture Naruto deduced that he was about to hit either him or Yuki with whatever he was holding in his hand but he quickly forgot about his plans when he saw the set of bright white fangs and slitted gold eyes look straight at him. He noticed that since Yuki grew larger she became bolder and more protective. As if she now felt that she had the strength to do what she wanted to do. He patted her on the head to get her attention and shook his head. She relaxed and growled once more before walking on leaving a group of terrified villagers behind.

He rounded the corner, already smelling the ramen. He was feeling giddy and he had a feeling that Yuki was experiencing something similar. Everything would be fine but fate had its ways and he managed to bump into someone. Beforehand he would have probably fallen on his back but now he stood still like a boulder, the training did pay off. He looked down at the person who was on the ground. 'Fur lined, grey coat. Red fang marks. White puppy. Murderous black eyes... Kiba' Naruto grinned as he saw his old... friend is not the word, more like pranking partner and one of the guys he escape with from Iruka's boring lectures.

"Hey! Watch where you're going you... Naruto?" Kiba said. At first he was angry at this random guy who bumped into him, he was still grumpy after losing another yet another spar with his sister. If he didn't notice the whisker marks and the blonde hair then he would have no idea who this guy was.

When Kiba called out the name of the boy both his teammates looked up to see why Kiba was so surprised. Shino raised an eyebrow and his glasses slipped a tiny bit down his nose while Hinata opened her mouth to say something but quickly went through all the shades of red, settling on tomato and then fainting. Kiba forgot about Naruto as he jumped up and picked up Hinata. He sent a small glare towards Naruto only to see that he was still completely clueless to Hinata's feelings 'Why did she have to chose him...' he thought. He snapped his head when he heard a small series of yips and barks. Just beside Naruto was standing a pretty large white fox.

"That is a good idea Yuki." Naruto said to the fox and then turned to Kiba who had Hinata in his arms still unconscious. "Hey Kiba, maybe you want to go for some ramen while we wait for Hinata to wake up?" Kiba nodded and started following Naruto who was now walking down to the ramen stand.

Everyone, including Yuki, took their seats inside the bar. Ayame called out to Teuchi to make the usual for Naruto and Yuki and then took orders from the other two.

"So Naruto, who is that?" Kiba said while pointing at the white fox that was now eating a bowl of extra meaty ramen.

"Oh, you mean Yuki? She is my partner just like Akamaru." Naruto explained. Kiba was a bit shocked but then got that glint in his eyes just as if someone threw him a challenge. Naruto already felt what was coming. After spending so many hours with some of the clan members he saw how they treat everything like a challenge and how they always try to prove themselves to be the 'top dog'.

"I'm sure that Akamaru could beat that fox of yours any day! Isn't that right Akamaru?" Kiba shouted in a similar fashion to how Naruto used to before. He got a bark in reply from his own partner. On the side Shino was watching Naruto curiously. He did not know him very well in the academy but it was in his nature's clan to be observant and it was hard to miss the changes.

"I wouldn't be so sure. Yuki can keep up one on one with one of Hana's dogs." Naruto said and dug into his ramen. Kiba was about to retort with something witty or with a challenge to a spar but instead started to stare at Naruto.

"First, how the hell do you know my sister and second, there's no way that furball of yours can keep up with one of the Haimaru brothers!" Kiba exclaimed loudly making Naruto and Yuki cringe.

"Well I never knew she was your sister. I train with her nearly every evening. As for the spars it was only one on one and she doesn't always win." Naruto said and then snickered. "Although Hana told me once that she had a small annoying brat for a brother." Kiba was now shaking with anger, somehow his sister managed to belittle him even when she wasn't nearby. He knew that he lost this little argument and he did not want to fight as to not show of his abilities. Instead Kiba settled on sitting down on the stool with his left eye twitching and his teeth gritting as he tried to calm down. Naruto and Yuki watched with amusement and a small chuckle escaped Naruto mouth but was quickly silenced by the glare sent to him by both Kiba and Akamaru. The blonde started back on the ramen before it got cold.

Hinata woke up with a groan. She looked around to see where she was and saw it was Naruto's favourite ramen stand. Kiba quickly calmed down and turned his attention to her when he saw that she was awake.

"Hinata, are you ok?" Kiba asked and Akamaru barked in concern for their teammate, they knew that she always did that near Naruto but still the worry remained.

"Uhm, yes I'm fine. Thank you Kiba." Hinata said quietly. Kiba nodded and went back to his stool and started eating now that he has calmed down. Hinata looked over to Naruto who was slurping the noodles and decided to muster her courage and ask a question that was bothering her while she was out. "Ano, Naruto-kun why do you look so different?" Naruto stopped his eating. He turned his head to Hinata and she saw a small smile. Everyone was listening since they all were equally curious to why Naruto changed so much.

"A lot of... things... happened on my last mission and I decided it was time for change. There isn't much else to it." Naruto very vaguely explained. Kiba's eyebrow was twitching 'he didn't tell us anything!'. Naruto smirked and stood up from his seat since he was finished. He waved the goodbye and left the ramen bar together with Yuki after dropping some notes on the counter and leaving team eight annoyed but even more curious as to what really happened with Naruto.

Naruto left before he had to answer any more questions. He wanted to keep what happened in wave to himself for now at least. Once he had shown his abilities in the exams the word will spread and everyone will know but by then it won't matter as much. _'A ninja must always maintain the element of surprise'_ Naruto was again stuck without much to do. He looked up to where he managed to walk to and saw that he was underneath the Hokage monument.

"Well I haven't been here in a long time. I guess everything is going better than ever before and I didn't feel the need." Naruto quietly said under his nose as he looked at the faces of the Hokages. Yuki was looking at him cautiously, she wasn't sure if he was happy or sad and about what. "Come on Yuki! Race to the top!" Naruto said with a playful smirk, she grinned back and started running up the stairs until she noticed Naruto run up the flat surface of the monument. 'Damn cheater, I will show you...' when she finally ran up the stairs she found Naruto laying on his back, looking up the sky, watching the clouds. She slowly sneaked up on him and jumped straight on his stomach with all four paws making Naruto cry in pain.

"Owww, Yuki I think you are forgetting that you aren't so little anymore." Naruto whined as he rubbed his stomach before slumping back down onto the soft grass. She grinned at him before laying down on the grass and wrapping her tail around herself.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

The next couple of days went by faster than Naruto had expected. He spent the days exploring the areas around Konoha together with Yuki and had to say that were many beautiful sights hidden in the forests surrounding the village. He watched as more and more foreign genin teams arrived for the chunnin exams and he had a run in with a couple of them. At one point he arrived to Konohamaru's rescue from the three sand genin. The makeup guy and the blonde girl stood out from the crowd as much as any other foreign genin but the youngest one from the group was the strangest. Naruto felt this strange aura around him and his eyes reminded him of something that he could not place. It felt as if the redhead reminded him of something. Naruto also saw a team from the hidden mist and from the swords that two of the boys carried he felt like maybe he could test his own skills with the blade against those from the country famous for their swordsmen.

Right now he was standing in front of the academy and was waiting for his teammates to get here. He was sure that Sasuke would be here but was not as sure about Sakura. The day that he saw her last when they left the training ground she was looking somewhat scared as if slowly she realised that maybe she was not ready. Naruto hoped that if she didn't have her own courage then her drive to 'woo' Sasuke would make her come. He was happy that he would get a chance to become a chunnin because that would bring him that one small step closer to being Hokage but he didn't want his teammate to possibly even die because she was not ready. He was brought out of his musings when he heard Sasuke call out to him in his usual way.

"Are you coming or not dobe?"Naruto smirked that the uchicha actually spoke. When he voiced his mocking concern all he got back was the usual 'Hn'. Naruto looked and around and saw Sakura coming up as well, there was some uncertainty on her face but she came in. The trio made their way through the doors of the academy and towards the room mentioned on the application forms.

They went up the stairs and saw a group of people pushing against one of the doors, shouting and screaming at the two chunnins who were apparently guarding the door. The 'guards' would kick the genin away and say stuff about being unworthy of entering the exams. Sakura leaned in between the two boys and in a quite rare so far show that she actually used that knowledge of hers told Naruto and Sasuke that she suspected a Genjutsu or something along those lines being placed on that particular door since they were on the second floor and not the third like the sheet had said. They moved up the stairs, ignoring some guy in a green spandex suit who was shouting something about 'proving his flames of youth' to Sakura, whatever that meant, and went up to the right door. Kakashi was already waiting for them, leaning against the wall with his favourite literature in hand. He took his eyes from the 'book' and eyed his genin carefully. They were moving together and did not seem as tense or anything of the likes.

'Maybe everything isn't lost' Kakashi thought. "It's good all three of you came. If you did not come as a full team then you would not be allowed to enter." Kakashi told them. "Good luck in the exams." And he was gone. Naruto sighed while Sasuke opened the doors and went through followed by Sakura. Naruto went in last, together with Yuki.

Inside the large classroom were teams from all over elemental nations. Ninja from Konoha, Suna, Ame, Kusa, Oto and Kiri. Naruto and Sasuke were scanning the possible competition and found only a handful to look as if they could actually cause problems but then again looks could deceive. The ones who were strong but smart enough to hide were the really dangerous ones. At some point Naruto's eyes crossed paths with those of the redhead sand genin whose name was apparently Gaara from what he heard people whisper.

Soon they were approached by the rest of the rookie nine. Apparently they all were allowed to participate but then again they all were going to be clan heads at some point in the future so a lot was expected of them. As expected Ino stuck herself to Sasuke and fought with Sakura, Choji was munching on his chips, lazy ass Shikamaru was muttering something about 'troublesome women' which got him a fist on the head from Ino, Kiba was boasting on how far he would get in the exams while Hinata and Shino were their quiet selves. They were joined by a group who had apparently waited for a year to take part in the exams. The first one was the green spandex guy they met earlier who Naruto nicknamed 'bushy brows'. Naruto could swear that those eyebrows were alive in some way. His teammates was a 'weapon mistress' Tenten and a Hyuuga named Neji. Naruto saw that the second he saw Hinata his face turned into that of anger for a fraction of a second before turning to the usual stoic, stick-up-the-ass Hyuuga look. Naruto all this time was sitting away from the group and was observing. Since he started training he started to prefer the peace and quiet of the forest than the clatter and shouting of large groups of people. What got his attention was when a Konoha gennin with grey hair approached the group. He looked somewhat suspicious if only by the fact that this was his seventh time in the exams. He told them something about info cards. Two names were mentioned: Gaara of the desert and Naruto Uzumaki. Naruto was actually curious what kind of information the guy had on him.

"Aww that's too easy, you already have their names but fine. Gaara known as Subaku no Gaara. Son of the fourth Kazekage. His special ability seems to be nearly total control over sand. He has completed nine C-rank, three B-rank and two A-rank missions. Apparently he has never been injured during a mission." Kabuto finished with a surprised expression. Everyone in the group started muttering and whispering between themselves about how he was never injured and how a genin could have been sent on so many high ranked missions. What the group agreed on was to stay away from him. Naruto was waiting to see how accurate his information was. Kabuto adjusted his glasses before reading out from the card.

"Naruto Uzumaki. Parents unknown. Works with a nin-fox partner. Holder of an unknown bloodline not present within Konohagakure before. Info on his skills is largely unknown except for his use of the A-ranked shadow clone jutsu. He has completed thirty D-rank and one A-rank missions."Naruto took a step back and cringed when suddenly he felt all the eyes on him. The questions were about to start but he was saved when who he guessed was the examiner shunshined into the room together with four chunnin who were helping him out.

Ibiki at first was not very happy with the idea of supervising a crowd of kids but then when he thought of the ways he could screw around with their heads he started thinking that it wasn't such a bad idea. The Hokage however refused most of his ideas until they worked out something were Ibiki could use his skills and teach the genin something without scaring them for life. The cruel grin that he appeared with inside the classroom quickly changed into an angry scowl as the brats just wouldn't shut it.

"Shut Up brats!" It wasn't really what he said but the volume of his voice that got their attention. The glare that promised pain also helped out. "Now that everyone is quiet we can start the first part of the exam. Get your number from one of my helpers and then sit in your seats quietly until further instructions."

The genin lined up to the four chunnin and in about five minutes the seats were filled. Seeing everyone was ready Ibiki could start his little game.

"The first exam will be a written test consisting of ten questions. The tenth question will be given to you fifteen minutes before the exam ends. You start with ten points and every time you are caught cheating you lose three points, every wrong answer is minus one point. If any of you reaches zero points then your whole team is disqualified." He looked over to see if the words sunk in. "Start!"

The sound of shuffling paper, tapping and scribbling of pencils and seconds later moans of frustration could be heard throughout the room. No one except about ten people in the whole room was writing and the reason was simple. Those questions were way too hard for even some chunnin to answer. As minutes passed some people started cheating and seeing that others were getting away with it more and more people were at least trying to cheat. Some just failed miserably.

"Number 54 you are out. Numbers 61 and 13 remember to thank your teammate." Ibiki shouted out and a chunnin escorted the team from suna out the door.

Naruto was stuck. He didn't have mind reading abilities, special eyes or bugs that could transfer information. Even Kiba solved his problem by getting Akamaru to a high point on his head and then the puppy would bark out the answers quietly but Yuki was too large to help him out like that. He looked around trying to find an answer to his problem and then he noticed the way Tenten was cheating by manipulating mirrors located at the ceiling. It was simple enough to work, especially since he could create mirrors with his jutsu. He trained hard to learn the full technique but was not able to finish it in time before the exams started. However Naruto managed to finish the first step which was being able to create small mirrors of ice in a pretty large radius around the caster. He took out a bottle of water and took a small sip of it before spilling a tiny amount on the floor and then closing the bottle.

Ibiki saw what Naruto was doing but had no idea where the boy was going with it; he took out and drank some water. It was already more than twenty minutes into the exam and he had not written a thing yet.

Naruto started doing the one handed signs just like Haku wrote in the scroll. 'Here goes nothing' when he formed the last sign and focused on a point in the ceiling he watched as slowly an ice mirror crystallised in the spot. Now he could see all the answers one of the boys two rows down had written.

Ibiki felt someone use chakra but after finding nothing strange with the class he dismissed it as either someone being overly happy or using a jutsu to cheat and managing to not get caught.

Naruto has finished writing down all the answers and had released the jutsu dropping a spoonful of water onto some poor guys head. He was so concentrated on trying to fill in the answers that when he felt something wet touch him on top of the head he yelped like a little girl and jumped up in his seat. This made a few people in the room snicker as it was quite a comical sight to see such a battle hardened ninja jump up in fright and screaming on top of his lungs. Ibiki was slightly amused and counted that as cheating since he did interrupt the whole exam and in a mission would be caught immediately. One of the chunnin escorted him and his very angry teammates out the door where a very vocal expression of their displeasure could be heard.

Ibiki looked at the clock that hung behind him and saw it was time to start the final part of the first exam. So far not that many got caught while cheating and he needed to reduce their numbers by quite a lot.

"Ok brats! Put down your pencils. Now you will be presented with an option." Ibiki said. The genin looked somewhat confused. "You now have the option of taking the tenth question or not taking it." Before Ibiki could continue Kiba had already cut him off.

"Why the hell would we not take the question?" Kiba asked and a lot of the genin in the room agreed. They were here to become chunnin so why would they forfeit the whole exam over one question. Ibiki glared at the dog boy, who suddenly felt really small compared to the man standing at the top of the room.

"There is a simple reason. If you do decide to take it and fail to answer properly you will be prohibited from entering the chunnin exams ever again." Ibiki said with a cruel smirk "However if you chose to walk away now, you can try again in six months."

"But there are people here who have taken the exam multiple times!" shouted some Kusa nin from the back of the room. Ibiki frowned and released some killer intent, just a little to help filter out the weaker ones.

"That may be so but I was not the proctor back then. This year I make the rules and all of your leaders have approved of this so make your choice." Ibiki said and stood still. Waiting for the cascade of genin to leave the room and as he predicted hands started moving up into the air and numbers were called out as whole teams were disqualified. It took on a snowball effect as more people left every minute.

Sakura was not sure if she would be able to answer that last question. She didn't want to get her whole team gutted because of her incompetence. To be more important she didn't want to make Sasuke wait for a field promotion to become a chunnin. Slowly she started raising her hand. Both Naruto and Sasuke noticed this and both reacted differently. Sasuke started to glare at her as if daring to move her hand while Naruto smiled sincerely as if trying to say that everything is going to be fine. Sakura looked between the two and reached somewhat of a middle ground between fear of disappointing and being filled with courage. She laid her hand back at the desk.

Ibiki decided that the numbers were down enough. He looked around the room and saw the last group leave. Most of the other genin left inside seemed to have already set their minds on taking the question so wasting no more time Ibiki decided to wrap it all up.

"Ok! Everyone who stayed... passed!" Ibiki exclaimed and watching with a smirk the shocked and confused expressions of most of the genin. Soon as he expected came the questions of why and how and what happened to the tenth question.

"There was no tenth question or if you prefer it that way, the choice if taking the question or not was the question itself." Seeing the puzzled faces he sighed and started explaining. "You will not always have the privilege of knowing what will happen during a mission and sometimes you will have to make hard choices on the spot with no supporting info. As a chunnin you are expected to lead the group and make those choices for them and this is what the tenth question simulated. You were given a choice with no information and had to make a choice that would affect your whole team."

"So the nine questions before were pointless?" Asked a kunoichi from Kiri. Ibiki shook his head.

"No. They tested your information gathering skills and your knowledge, both important for a chunnin." He was about to say that the test was over but suddenly he felt a familiar chakra and already knew what was going on.

The glass window broke as a dark spinning ball bashed through it and landed on the floor, revealing the form of a woman in a tan trench coat. Behind her a large banner was stuck to the ceiling.

_The sexy and single_

_Anko Mitarashi_

_Proctor of the second exam_

**To Be Continued...**


	6. I'm sage, Pervy sage!

Naruto silently watched the birds rise up from the tree tops of the forest of death. He was currently leaning against the railings inside his room in the tower that was their goal in the second part of the exam just as he did for the past three days. Naruto sighed as his mind brought back the memories of the two days he and his team spent inside the forest before they somehow managed to get to the tower. 'I knew it wouldn't be easy but that was too much...' was his thought at everything what happened and he was quite right. No one said that it would be easy but no one also said that he is going to have to fight one of the three sannin for kami's sake! He would be surely dead if not for Anko arriving with a group of anbu and 'scarring' the snake away before pursuing after him. 'Thank kami snake-face got distracted with Anko and missed that sealing attack of his...' Naruto wasn't sure what would have happened if he got hit by the seal but it surely would not be anything good although seeing more and more seals had created the urge for him to search for more. Naruto made a mental note to add this to his training schedule after this is finished. He had to train much more. The fight with Orochimaru had shown how truly weak he was, he never expected to be anywhere near Orochimaru's level but he got swatted away like a fly and because of this the uchicha got injured. Naruto half expected for someone to burst into the room to arrest him for allowing harm come to the last Uchiha. The thought prompted a shallow chuckle. 'At least I defended both him and Sakura from those damn sound ninja.' Sasuke was unconscious for the whole second day and only awakened inside the tower with the help of medic nins. After they checked that he was all right kakashi took him somewhere for a whole day, Naruto was curious but he knew he would never get an answer so he just left it. Yeah, this was way too much than anyone could have anticipated. Over the past days he wasn't only thinking about what happened in the forest but about his life as a whole and while after wave his character changed to be more timid and closed up now he was cold... just like the ice even if he didn't knew it.

The small speaker mounted in every room screeched lightly before a voice of a woman could be heard.

"Everyone participating in the chunnin exams is to report to the main hall. If you are not there within ten minutes then you are disqualified." The speaker screeched again and went silent. Naruto looked back up at the sky and sighed. He felt as a cool breeze washed over his body as if to tell him to keep calm. This was another peculiar thing he noticed. He started enjoying the cold. It felt peaceful and quiet. The fact that the coolness made sure he was alone most of the time was only an added bonus. He pushed himself of the metal bar and went back inside the room before closing the sliding glass doors. He walked up to the bed quietly, making sure not to wake up his furry friend who was sleeping on her back on top of the pillows with her back leg twitching every now and then. It was a comical sight. Naruto picked up his jacket and threw it on before strapping his scroll to his back. He double checked if everything was there before he got to waking up Yuki. He shook the fox lightly but she only turned away and curled up into a ball while muttering something that Naruto couldn't understand. He tried and failed again and started wondering how it happened that their characters switched. When he first met her she was calm and collected and he was the kid with too much energy and who loved to sleep but now it was the other way around. She was the bundle of energy on legs and he was the voice of reason. Naruto shook his head as another attempt failed. He looked at the clock and saw that they still had five minutes. Another failed attempt got him a kick to the face and growl but the fur ball kept on sleeping. 'How hard can a fox sleep...' he thought as he stood up with a paw imprint on his forehead and his right eye twitching from frustration. He took a water bottle that stood on the nightstand and emptied it into a large glass. A couple of handsigns and a tinge of ice chakra to make sure the water was extra cold resulted in a scream of a terrified fox.

"Hahahaha, you should have seen yourself!" Naruto shouted while pointing at the drenched figure of Yuki who looked at him with pure hate in her golden eyes. Naruto completely ignored that and was doubled over; holding his stomach in laughter and it was now Yuki's turn for the frustrated eye twitch. Naruto got himself back together before opening the door and waving for Yuki to follow.

They reached the spot just on time and saw that everyone who passed was no lined up in the middle of the room. He noticed that not even a half of the teams that started managed to get to the tower. He noticed that all of the rookies including team guy were there. He then started looking at all the other possible competition. There was the group from Kiri, the suna siblings and Kabuto's team. Either Konoha was really strong or the other village were very weak this year. The small chatter quieted down as the Hokage entered the room, right behind him a jonin wearing a bandana instead of the usual headband. 'That guy needs to go to the hospital instead of being here; he looks as if he didn't sleep in a week.' The study of medical Jutsu and medical books kicked in Naruto's head. He did not try any medical Jutsu yet but he knew the theory behind it and he learned a lot about anatomy to be able to use senbon needles similarly to how Haku used them. He was brought out of his musings as the Hokage started speaking.

"Now you must be wondering why you were brought here? As you can see twenty one of you got this far and it shows your skill and determination but it is still too many." Hiruzen took a look around the gennin and saw they were all waiting for an explanation of what the heck he was talking about. "As you learned in the academy about the different wars that plagued our history you realise that the villages of elemental nations always try to show off their strengths to attract customers and prevent conflicts. A way in the past was to fight the other villages in full scale battles but after the third war it was decided it was time to stop the bloodshed and the idea of exams such as this came up. This means that on the day of the third exam the eyes of the whole elemental nations will be on you and so only the most qualified can be allowed to partake." The Hokage finished and saw the still confused faces except for a few of the genin who got what he said. He turned his head to the side when he heard a cough trying to get his attention.

"I think I should *cough* take over now." Said the sickly looking jonin. Sarutobi nodded and stepped back. "My name is Hayate Gekko and I'm the proctor of the third exam!" He said as loudly as he could which got him pretty much undivided attention. "To summarise what Hokage-sama said, you will be representing your village in this exam before the eyes of the whole of elemental nations and only the best will be given the chance. To make sure that the best of you pass we will have a set of preliminary fights right now! If you don't want to participate, leave now." Just as he finished he succumbed into another coughing fit but continued watching as only one of the genin left.

Naruto eyes Kabuto with suspicion as he left. Apparently he had no chakra and was injured after the last fight and as a medic nin he didn't have much combat skills. Naruto though saw no symptoms of chakra exhaustion or anything like that. Something was going on. He turned towards the Hokage and as their eyes locked they both knew that they were thinking the same thing.

"Alright! *Cough* get up on the balconies and wait until your name appears on the board up there." Hayate said as he pointed to the large electronic board showing space for ten matches which would half the number entering the third part of the exam, whenever it was. Everyone got on top of the balconies, some much slower than others seeing as they returned from the forest less than two hours ago. Naruto remembered the shock on the faces of the chunnin in the tower when they realised that team seven was actually the second team to pass the exam. He looked as the names started rushing across the screen until they randomly set on two names; Sasuke and one of the mist genin called Kaito.

Everyone watched as the two jumped down and without even exchanging words started into a fight. It just happened that Sasuke with being close combat and knowing only fire techniques was at a disadvantage to the long range water user which quickly showed when a great waterfall Jutsu shoved him into the wall. The whole room had to give it to the Mist gennin since the technique was an A-rank but it seemed that their congratulations were too early. The Jutsu must have taken a lot of chakra from the boy and when Sasuke gathered himself up from the ground all it took was a good aimed strike to the kidney and Kaito was out. Naruto wondered why the boy didn't have the sword that he saw him wearing before the exam started but it was all over now anyway.

Naruto wasn't that interested in most other fights except for two or three but he continued watching anyway while waiting for his turn. He was standing quite a distance away from his team, trying to ignore the shouts of adoration coming from Ino and Sakura about Sasuke's fight.

The names spun again and the names of Shizuka, the girl from the mist team, and Sakura came up on the board. 'Oh my, this will be fun...' Naruto thought with a roll of his eyes. If Sakura behaved just like she did in the forest then this would be over faster than him finishing a bowl of ramen. The two combatants were staring down each other before the two kunoichis charged each other with a kunai in hand. Naruto noticed that the kunai that the mist girl was using was slightly curved just like the ones he got from zabuza 'It must be a mist thing.'. Shizuka used a water Jutsu to spill water all around Sakura which seemed quite strange at the time. Sakura smirked thinking that her opponent was getting tired and missed her Jutsu but she did not expect for three other versions of Shizuka come charging at her while the original disappeared. To everyone else Sakura was fighting ghosts and thin air while Shizuka slowly made her way over with a kunai in hand. A swift motion and Sakura was in a headlock with a kunai pressed against her throat. Hayate seeing this called the match in favour of Shizuka who quietly made her way back to her team while Sakura stomped her way up, fuming with anger at being humiliated like that and the snickering Ino only added oil to the fire.

Naruto heard Yuki snicker lightly from her spot under the wall, she probably heard and saw everything and he had to agree, it was a bit funny. The names spun again and Shikamaru and Choji's appeared. Shikamaru sighed and Choji nearly dropped his bag of crisps. It was clear that they didn't want to do this but they moved down anyway. No one expected what happened next when Shikamaru ran through a fast series of handsigns and before Choji could react he was stuck in the shadow possession Jutsu.

"Choji, give up or I will do it." Shikamaru called out in the same bored voice as always. Choji's face drained of colour.

"You wouldn't dare!" Choji yelled back while everyone inside stared at the two with no idea what was going on until they heard Shikamaru and saw what was happening.

"Troublesome. Fine but it wasn't my fault."Shikamaru sighed at the end and reached with his hand for his pants pocket and took nothing out but the movement was mimicked on the other side by Choji who now had an opened pack of crisps in his hand. Slowly Shikamaru and Choji's hands started tilting in unison. Choji nearly cried when the contents of the packet spilled on the floor. Before Shikamaru lowered his and Choji's foot down on the crisps to finish the job Choji finally called out that he gives up.

"You owe me those crisps... and a BBQ!" Choji yelled as he and Shikamaru were going up the stairs and Shikamaru could only nod. Asuma slapped his face in disbelief at what he just saw.

Next came up Gaara and... Ino. Gaara used a sand shunshin to get down while Ino walked down the stairs with shaking legs. Any other time it would be quite a laugh to see a ninja so scared but team seven and team ten saw how Gaara killed a group of Kusa nins inside the forest with his sand, it wasn't a pleasant sight. Ino looked up to her teammates and saw them nod to her to not give up. She steeled herself and took the academy stance. Bravery will not win fights for you and one must know their limits and when to back away from a fight, a lesson learned by everyone when Ino got knocked out with a single whip of sand. Gaara didn't even bother looking back as he got back on top of the balconies. Asuma sent a glare towards him while jumping down to pick up Ino and carrying her to the medical bay, followed by Choji, Shikamaru and Sakura.

Shino fought against one of Kabuto's teammates, Yoroi was his name. The whole fight came down to who could eat away the chakra of your opponent faster. Shino won due to the fact that his bugs worked at range and soon Yoroi was laying flat on the floor.

Kankuro smirked as he jumped down to face the smaller version of the 'green beast of Konoha'. When they were sent to Konoha on their mission they were given a summary of the abilities of nearly everyone in the village that their spies managed to get information on. He knew that this Lee had no access to any Jutsu and he could only use taijutsu. With his long ranged attacks from his puppets this would be a piece of cake. Lee instantly got into the strong fist stance while Kankuro took off the object from his back. No point hiding it if he could end the fight quickly. Hayate called out for them to start the fight. Everyone gasped at lee's speed as his foot connected with Kankuro's face and made him roll along the ground together with the package wrapped in bandages. He growled in anger, more at himself for letting his guard down and let the bandages come off revealing a wooden puppet. Most of the people in the room had never seen a puppeteer so their eyes were stuck to the fight. The next couple of exchanges consisted of dodging kicks, punches and poisoned needles which flew out of the puppets mouth while it protected its master. Then something happened that Kankuro had never expected. Lee put all his strength into this single kick as he lunched off the wall and while spinning crashed his foot straight into the puppet. The strength behind the attack was enough to make a hole and the puppet's body started cracking. The fight was over. Kankuro was on his knees, trying to gather the remains of his most treasured creation while Lee smiled brightly while walking back to his team. Lee heard words of praise from his sensei for defeating such a youthful opponent while Kankuro only got a glare and a whisper of _"Useless"_ from his brother.

Yuki perked up as she heard Naruto call her name. She looked up and saw him grinning and already knew that it was time for their fight. Everyone who was not stuck in the medical bay had their eyes now fixed on Naruto and Kiba as they stood on the stone floors, smirking at each other while their companions tried to intimidate each other. It worked in Yuki's favour if only due to her much larger size. A lot of people have heard rumours of how Naruto changed and of what happened in wave but only a handful knew what really happened. The general thought was that even though he changed his clothes, surely the dead last could not get that much better as some rumours said... could he?

"So Kiba, you are finally getting the fight you asked for. You will finally know that I'm better than you." Naruto said calmly. During his fights with Hana he learned that even though the Inuzukas fought with ferocity and were more animal like they still kept their mind calm during fights and that a short temper and anger affected them just like it would any other ninja. Kiba lost His smirk and his face turned to that of anger. He turned to Akamaru and nodded, there was no point wasting time with the dobe.

"Four Legs technique!" Kiba shouted as his features turned more feral and his body moved onto all fours, a position that Naruto has seen many times before. Naruto focused for a second and sent some of Hyōton chakra throughout his body before dropping on all fours himself. Because he was not an Inuzuka he could not learn the technique itself and so any of the others which followed but he learned the theory behind it and adapted it to his own style. Naruto smirked when he saw the shocked look that Kiba gave him.

"Don't give me that look, I told you I trained with Hana." Naruto mockingly called out. "Now are you going to attack or did you chicken out already?" This got Kiba to attack first, Naruto nodded to Yuki who charged off after Akamaru while Naruto himself charged for Kiba. They met in the very middle, exchanging blows and counters until a spinning kick and punch to the chest sent them skidding across the floor and away from each other. Only then did Kiba started grasped his arm and shouted in pain as the cold burns across his arm started acting up.

The whole room was silently shocked at what just happened. they expected Naruto to lose within the first couple minutes but he was actually... winning.

"So you can see the effects of my chakra. That is only the beginning."Naruto called out as he straightened up. Kiba glared at him before looking at Akamaru who was also losing his fight.

"This isn't over! Come on Akamaru, let's show him!" Kiba shouted as he threw the small pill towards Akamaru who caught it mid air and swallowed it. Immediately his fur turned red and he grew up to Yuki's size. Kiba took a similar pill and started charging again. Naruto knew it wasn't a good idea to engage Kiba in taijutsu now, he still felt the pain after Hana's beatings. Naruto quickly spilled a water bottle on the floor that he kept just for this occasion. Three hand signs ending with hare and a shout of "Wild Water Wave" sent Kiba back a bit but mostly spilled the water around the room. Kiba then did exactly what Naruto wanted; he stepped into the puddle of water.

Kiba wasn't sure what happened himself, he started his charge but then got pushed back by a suiton Jutsu 'Since when does the dobe can use suiton Jutsu?'. He tried to move his legs but found that he couldn't. Kiba looked down and saw that his legs up to his knees were covered by ice, very strong ice. He looked up to Naruto and saw that the blonde had his hands on the spot where the puddle started not moments ago but now most of the water in the room was ice. Only then did he realise what happened.

The audience was more and more shocked as the fight went on. Naruto now whipped out three senbon needles and ran towards Kiba. A second later the dog boy was laying unconscious on the ground. Sasuke looked at the whole scene and his fists clenched in anger. It wasn't the strength or anything but he remembered exactly who used similar Jutsu and weapons, it was that mist hunter nin who humiliated him so much in wave but how did Naruto got his hands on those techniques and why could he not copy them. He didn't want to ask the blonde but surely kakashi would know something.

The room was silent as the proctor called out the win in Naruto's favour. Once Naruto heard that he won he bent over Kiba's unconscious body and took out the senbon before pressing a few points on his neck and sending a small pulse of chakra which instantly woke the genin from his 'sleep'. Kiba shot up, his legs now free and had no idea what was going on. The medics stopped halfway and they weren't quite sure what to do so they just went back to the medical bay.

"Kiba...Kiba!" Naruto called out to the slightly confused genin, trying to get his attention. "Common, we will get you to the medical bay, just in case I broke something other than your pride, we can also see Choji and patch up Akamaru." Kiba thought for a second before nodding.

"So I lost eh?" Kiba said a bit downtrodden as he walked beside Naruto with Yuki in tow and Akamaru slung across her back.

"Yeah, but it was a good fight. If you kept your cool and didn't underestimate me then you probably had a chance." Kiba smirked, his usual self coming back.

"Yeah! We are having a rematch the next time you are at the compound! I still don't know how is it that we never met even though you spend so much time in there." Naruto nodded with a smile, it was true that he spent most of the time with Hana but it really was strange that he never met Kiba inside his own clan compound.

Everyone back inside got out of their shock and small whispers erupted around the genin, jonin-senseis and the chunnin that were overlooking the fights. This was supposed to be the dead last of the graduating class? Three people out of the group had small smirks gracing their faces. 'You are worthy of my time Naruto/Uzumaki/Dobe' were the thoughts of Kikaku, Gaara and Sasuke.

After patching up Yuki and Akamaru the four went back to the hall only to see the ending of the last match. Neji had delivered an open palm strike straight on top of Hinata's chest, apparently barely missing the heart. Immediately he was surrounded by all of the Konoha's jonin senseis present in the room. Both Kiba and Naruto glared at Neji's retreating back as they went up to check on Hinata. She would be stuck in the hospital for a couple of days but would be fine otherwise. The medics placed her on a stretcher and Kiba and Kurenai followed them out.

"Ok everyone, congratulations on passing the preliminaries! *Cough* now line up and take a number from this box to decided who you will fight in the finals. You got exactly one month to prepare for your matches which will be held in the main stadium." Hayate called out before nearly coughing his lungs out. Everyone got into a single line and picked out a number.

"Sasuke Uchicha, five!"

"Neji Hyuuga, three!"

"Temari, seven!"

"Gaara of the desert, four."

"Rock Lee! Six!"

"Shikamaru Nara, eight..."

"Shino Aburame, ten."

"Shizuka, nine!"

"Kikaku, two!"

"Naruto Uzumaki, one!"

The electronic board flashed as one of the chunnin entered the names and the matchups appeared on the board. Everyone looked up to see who their opponent is going to be in the first round. Naruto smirked lightly when he saw that he would be fighting Kikaku.

The genin eyes their opponents and the general thought was that of 'I won't lose to someone like him/her' while others smirked at the opportunity of a challenge. Finally Shikamaru broke the silence by voicing a question that had been in his head since they started this little tournament and it was getting quite... troublesome.

"I have a question." Hayate looked at Shikamaru before nodding.

"If this is a tournament then will only one of us advance to chunnin?" Some of the other genin nodded in agreement since it was a good question while others already knew the answer.

"No, your promotion will be decided by the Hokage and the *Cough* council of your village. If you win your fight you get more *Cough* chances to show your skill." Hayate coughed out the last part. The genin nodded, accepting the answer. Hayate then told them again that they had thirty days and that they could go home now.

Naruto's first thought was to ask Yugao if she could train him at all during the month since the skill that he wanted to train up the most at the moment was his Kenjutsu. Sarutobi reacted as if he had read the blonde's mind. He motioned for Naruto to come over, away from the rest of the now slowly dispersing group.

"I guess you wanted to ask Yugao-san if she could train you for the month?" Sarutobi asked and smirked when Naruto opened his mouth to say something but closed it quickly and nodded. "Well I'm sorry Naruto-kun but she is out on a mission for the next two weeks at least." At this Naruto's face demeanour fell, now he would have to train by himself since surely kakashi would go off to teach Sasuke and there wasn't much that Hana could teach him anymore that wasn't the deepest clan secret. The only thing left was as she called it 'Controlling and communing with your inner beast' which Naruto easily got as using the foxes chakra. Sarutobi smiled again and put a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "Don't worry Naruto; there was someone who requested to teach you during the month personally. Go to the Hot springs near the Hokage monument and look around. Remember! Not inside but around." Sarutobi smirked again while Naruto could only nod dumbly before thanking and moving towards Yuki.

"So what are we doing now?" Yuki asked, she couldn't wait to start training again and it easily showed as she lightly trembled when she spoke with the next month in mind.

"Ojisan told me that we have a new teacher but we have to find him first. Come on." Naruto said with a smile and moved towards the doors with a white fox beside him.

Naruto arrived at the hot springs and did as instructed. He walked around the hot springs and started his search there.

"Yuki, can you smell anyone around here? that is outside of the hot springs?" Yuki turned her head and started sniffing. She caught a scent pretty fast.

"There is someone in that tree over there, he smells of toads and sake." Yuki said as she pointed to a tree that hung over the women only pools. As they got closer they heard a school girl like giggle coming from the tree. Naruto put two and two together and figured the man out. His eye twitched in light anger. He hated perverts. The fact that this guy was probably his new teacher changed nothing. He aimed for the branch where he saw a piece of coat appear on and made a wind blade, cutting it at the base. Both Naruto and Yuki watched in amusement as a figure of a man comically fell down the tree and, from the sound of water and screaming women, straight into the pool.

Naruto and Yuki just got around to the entrance when they saw a white haired man in his fifties get thrown out of the building, face first into the cobblestone road. Naruto eyebrow rose and Yuki tilted her head when the man stood up as soon as he felt he was safe and he seemed totally unharmed. When the man noticed Naruto he shot him a glare.

"What did you do that for kid? I was doing my precious research and because of your stunt I lost a week's worth!" The man nearly yelled. Naruto's eye twitched again. This guy needed Anko, Yugao and Hana to whip some sense into him.

"You are a pervert that's why! And research? You know... I don't want to know..." Naruto said with a sigh and shook his head. "Anyway, Ojisan sent me here and said my new teacher will be here so I thought it was you but apparently I was mistaken." Naruto yelled at the start but quickly regained his composure. The man was about to retort until he took a look at the kid before him. Blonde hair, blue eyes, whisker marks... it's Minato's kid alright. He smirked and got into his pose.

"Well then search no more since you have found the Greatest of them all, the great toad sage Jiraiya." Naruto and Yuki sweat dropped. And were about to turn away before Jiraiya shouted in anger at the dismissal of his great introduction. "Hey, how can you disrespect your elders like this. Have some respect for a sannin!" Naruto heard of the sannin and if this man was saying the truth then he was much more powerful than he looked like. He turned back around. "So do you want this training or not?"

Naruto smirked. "Sure pervy sage." Jiraiya gained a tick mark on his forehead. This kid had no manners.

"What did you call me brat?"

Naruto grinned like a fox by now. "I certainly did not call you pervy sage, pervy sage." Naruto and Yuki broke into a run as an angry Jiraiya chased them around half of Konoha, a small smile never leaving his face.

**To Be Continued...**


	7. Sign here in blood

It was a lunch at ichiraku ramen that led us to a trio of a very satisfied blonde gennin, an overgrow white fox and a white haired sannin crying over his now empty wallet as they walked towards the clan compound of one of the Konoha clans. From the outside they all looked relaxed, enjoying the warm weather and somewhat unusual for a ninja the sense of peace but on the inside it was a truly different matter. For the past three weeks Jiraiya of the Sannin has trained Naruto to make sure that he would become a chunnin during the upcoming exam. Increasing his taijutsu skill, endurance and speed. Making him master the ninjutsu he knew and showing him how to use it to the greatest effect. Improving on the already great teamwork between the kid and the fox. Jiraiya pushed Naruto harder and harder until the blonde had started to curse him with names that he surely must have heard from Anko.

Any unbiased jonin who saw Naruto now would have said that his skills were already at the level of a chunnin but there would be a difference between those exams and any others. The confrontation of the two hosts at some point would be inevitable and the 'stability' of the host of the one tails was only heard off in stories full of blood, death and ripped limbs the fact remained that Konoha needed to be secure against that and the best way to do that was to get their own weapon ready. Jiraiya remembered the change in expression of Naruto's face when he was told that something had to be done with the 'other' fox. In the end Naruto had agreed to talk with the fox and that is the reason why this unusual trio was heading towards the Inuzuka compound.

As they walked through the village they got many looks from villagers and the ninja alike. Looks of awe and curiosity towards the sannin and those of distaste and anger towards the 'foxy' duo. The latter ones were gone as quickly as they appeared as soon as their sources felt Jiraiya angry stare on them. By the time the trio had reached Hana at their meeting place inside the compound they had left a part of the village scurrying around, trying not to trigger the anger of the sannin.

Naruto grinned and Yuki ran from his side to meet up with her second favourite human she had met. Jiraiya only smiled as he saw that things were not as bad, he heard from Naruto during their training all about the people in his life. Soon Hana and Naruto were sitting cross legged on the grass opposite of each other.

"So Naruto are you ready? I will lead you into your mind just like it was done for all Inuzukas who had 'problems' with controlling their other side but after that you are on your own." Naruto's expression turned into that of determination as he said nothing and settled for a nod. Hana mirrored that expression and nodded as well before forming a couple of handsigns and slamming her hand open hand against Naruto stomach. They both swayed a few times before falling back onto their backs. The only movement being their slow breathing.

Jiraiya and Yuki watched as all of that happened from the sidelines and the fox whimpered lightly as Naruto and Hana fell unconscious. The toad sannin hmpfed and muttered under his nose something close to '_I would have thrown the brat off a cliff...'_ but it was loud enough for Yuki to hear. Today was the day he realised how sharp those teeth were and how fast a fox could run...

Meanwhile Hana and Naruto arrived in Naruto's mindscape. The rotten stench of still water and the overall rundown look of the place horrified Hana; it was a sewer for Kami's sake! She had heard description of other minds and saw her own one during her own ritual but this was beyond her. She wanted to stay with the blonde that over the months she started to see as a family of sorts but knew that she would be no help.

"That's as far as I go Naruto..." Hana said in a solemn voice. Her voice startled Naruto slightly and he turned his head to face her. Now a sad smile was present on his face, one of gratitude.

"Don't worry, I can do it! We both know I can." He exclaimed and they both grinned, the atmosphere suddenly seemed less tense. Hana watched as Naruto thought for a second before his eyebrows scrunched. He turned his face again and his hand started to scratch the back of his head. "Uhm how do I get out of here later on, you know when I'm done."

Hana smiled, he was cute all flustered like that. "Your mind will kick you out when it feels that you are done or I suspect that your friend up there will remove you from here as you said he did before."

Naruto took on a serious expression again before nodding and running off into the darkness of the sewer.

"Cya later kid..." Hana shouted before she felt herself being pulled out of Naruto's mind.

Yuki stopped her assault on Jiraiya when she noticed Hana's hand twitch. She ran up to her and sat beside her, waiting until Hana woke up. Meanwhile Jiraiya was laying still on the floor holding his privates and muttering something about 'women' and 'damn foxes'.

When Hana was fully awake she started to relay what she saw to Jiraiya who had trouble taking it in.

"You know that the mindscape represents the state of the owner's mind... his was a sewer, if it is that bad then I have no idea how he keeps acting can like he does!" Jiraiya could only nod; his mind looked like Mount Myōboku. It wasn't as green and calm as the real place but he had seen a lot in his life and it was understandable but this... he should have never left the village or instead could have taken young Naruto with him. All of this could have been avoided but instead he listened to the third and took to mourning his late apprentice. This was his last chance to at least try to make it better...

Naruto kept on running, trying to get to his destination faster. If he could do something to spend less time in here then he would do it. This place just reminded him of some bad memories, especially when he passed some of the larger leaks in the walls of the sewer. He wasn't sure if he was going the right way but he just had a feeling that it was and his instincts saved his ass a couple of times before so who he was to not listen to them again.

It seemed an eternity before he started to feel something. The water that reached his ankles was getting colder and his breath was turning misty. He continued further along and at some point had to jump out of the water and onto what seemed like ice. By now he could feel the penetrating cold but it did not hurt him, just like when he used his ice Jutsu.

As he went along the dark and now frozen sewer Naruto was getting ready to face the fox, he had already imagined a couple of situations and none of them seemed plausible... at least Yuki said so when he described them to her. He tried to remember the advice given to him by Jiraiya and Hana.

"Be somewhat respectful yet assertive... what the hell is assertive!" he shouted at the empty sewer and would have continued to think about it but instead he reached his destination...

Huge golden bars reached from the floor and disappeared into the ceiling of the great hall before him. They seemed to divide the whole room into two parts, one of which looked as if it had no end. It felt as if all the cold was coming from here as even some of the leaks coming out of the walls were frozen. This would have been all fine if not for the fox sprawled out on the other side of the cage. The beast was huge, its fur blood red with nine tails laid out behind it. Naruto took a couple of steps forward but stepped back as the huge ears twitched. As soon as they picked up some new sound the fox started waking up, his eyes snapped open to reveal blood red irises with slits. He huffed and Naruto could feel the warm air on his face. As soon as the misty air cleared Naruto stood face to face with the nine tailed fox, both glaring at each other, both hating each other for different reasons.

An angry roar echoed across the room and through the corridors as the Kyuubi struggled to get free against the ice, never taking his eyes off the blonde brat in front of him. The only thing on his mind right now was to hurt the brat but his attempts were in vain and soon he fell to the floor, wincing in pain. Naruto had no sympathy but he couldn't hold back the cringe at the sound of pain coming from the fox.

"So my container has finally decided to visit..." the Kyuubi said in a voice that shook the ice underneath Naruto's feet. The fox's eyes narrowed slightly. "Come to see your work? Come to steal my power? Just like all the others..." The last part came out as a whisper but Naruto heard it loud and clear.

"I don't know what you are talking about fox, I can swear that this" At that he mentioned towards the ice bindings "is not my work. I may not like you but I would have never done that..." Naruto ignored the scoff that came from the fox and continued. "I came here... because I need your help."

Asking for help? That was a first. The first host didn't talk or do much to him while the second staked him to a rock and took whatever she wanted. This brat though... he wasn't lying when he said it wasn't him and he was trying to keep his cool and was doing quite well so far, the fox had to give it to him.

Naruto saw that he now had more of the fox's attention and pressed on. "I don't think you know what is happening outside but I might have to end up fighting another host and... I-I am not powerful enough by myself." The fox raised an eyebrow to that, wondering which of his kin it was.

"And why would I help you?" Kyuubi's voice now was more even, not sounding as angry but more tired. Naruto started thinking; he had to think of a reason. Everything went good so far, better than he thought it would but he needed to see it through to the end. What was the Kyuubi like... scary for sure, powerful, he probably was proud of that power...

"Do you really want me to lose to another inferior host?"Naruto exclaimed which was a small surprise to the fox. "The great Kyuubi, the mightiest of the tailed beasts lost a fight against some weakling. I'm sure the news would spread fast..." Naruto left it hanging with a grin on his face while Kyuubi's eyes narrowed.

"Don't think you can fool me brat, I can see through your games ... but yes you are right."At that comment the falling grin came back full force but the fox wasn't finished. "That is not enough though. If you free me from this ice then I might... consider it." The Kyuubi finished while trying to stand up. Naruto was thinking if he should trust the fox as he had no idea if the ice was part of the seal or if it was connected to his kekkei genkai. He had to make a choice fast as he saw the Kyuubi wait for answer and with a sigh nodded his head.

"I don't know if I can remove it but I will do what I can." Naruto said as he walked closer to the bars that separated him from the tailed beast. He knelt down and took one final glance and the fox who tried to look disinterested but was failing to do so. The blonde snickered at that and placed his hands on the ice. 'I hope this works the same way it works in the real world...' was his thought as he started focusing on manipulating the ice. Sending chakra into it, locating the places where the Kyuubi was bound and melting and removing the ice around it. He could feel the sweat forming on his forehead as this was way bigger than any manipulation he had done before. Before he tried to freeze and thaw a bath size amount of water at most and this was more like a swimming pool.

From above a pair of red eyes watched as the blonde was doing his best to fulfil his part of the agreement. Maybe this one would not be as bad as the others. Minutes passed and as he was about to give up and force the brat out of here the Kyuubi felt water on his paws. Giving his legs and his tails a small shake he could feel the binds loosen up before finally he tugged on them harder and nearly howled in joy as the ice broke and he could actually feel his limbs. He looked down at the kid to find him panting on the ground.

"You will get as much power as I feel you need. No more and no less." Naruto looked up from the ground at the origin of the voice but before he could say anything he felt himself being pushed out from the mindscape. As he opened his eyes again he found himself staring into the dark afternoon sky and as soon as he made some movement three pairs of eyes appeared in his view.

"So how did it go?""Are you okay kid?" and what the others heard as a "Yip!" were the first things Naruto heard as the other senses started to come back to him. He groaned as he felt a headache start and sat up on the ground.

"How long was I out?" Inside his mind it felt like an hour or two but on the outside it seemed like a lot more had passed. Jiraiya and Hana looked at each other before looking back at Naruto.

"I was out for only about five minutes but you were out for six hours. What happened?" Hana told him. 'Six hours? What the...'

"I'm ...fine." Naruto said without really thinking and got strange looks from his two teachers. "We got an agreement of sorts; he said that he will give me power when he thinks I need it..."

"Really that is better than I had expected Naruto." Jiraiya said with a thoughtful look. "But that is not all, right?" Naruto slowly shook his head.

"The whole talk felt strange. You said that he would probably be angry and try to hurt me and he was like that at the start but he then became kind off... bitter. He said something about his previous hosts and when we were done he just wanted to be left alone." Naruto finished while looking at the ground.

Meanwhile Jiraiya was going over things in his head. If the Kyuubi knew of Kushina and told Naruto then things could get ugly real fast. The best way out of it was to tell Naruto himself and soon. Still today was a great accomplishment and Naruto was right in a way. Mito and Kushina described the Kyuubi as a violent and mad beast, this would require more research. Still the sage smiled.

"We will continue your training tomorrow Naruto. Go home and rest up, I have a big surprise for you tomorrow." As soon as Naruto heard that he couldn't stop thinking what it might be but no amount of pestering would make Jiraiya say what it was. The tiredness caught up with him and the blonde followed Yuki to their home.

Next day Naruto found himself on the same training ground where Jiraiya has been training him since the start of the month. Slowly he started getting impatient as Jiraiya kept ignoring him or telling him to be quiet for the past half hour. The pervy sage was using binoculars to spy on the girls in the nearby bath house. 'That probably was the reason he chose this place...' Naruto thought as his eyebrow twitched in anger but there wasn't much he could do. This had happened before but when he tried to teach Jiraiya a lesson he learned why he earned the title of a sannin. He threw himself back onto the grass and just stared into the sky. Just as he started to relax something blocked his view. Jiraiya decided it was time to finally start training again.

"Yesterday we have dealt with the biggest problem so for the rest of the week it will be only light training to keep you in shape." Jiraiya said with a proud smile. Naruto grinned in return but then quirked an eyebrow as if to say 'are you sure'. "You are at a level a lot of chunnin in the village would be jealous of."

"I'll be a chunnin in no time! And that is a step closer to the Hokage!" Naruto exclaimed with a fist in the air. "So what was this big surprise?"

Jiraiya smirked, bit his finger, did a couple of handsigns and slammed his hand into the ground with a shout of "Kuchiyose no Jutsu" producing a human size poof of smoke. When the smoke cleared it revealed a strange looking toad. It was nearly as tall as Naruto, had red and black coloured markings covering its body but the strange part was the scroll-like looking stomach.

The toad looked around and when its eyes noticed Jiraiya it did a small bow before it started to speak in its croaky voice.

"Hello Jiraiya-sama." Jiraiya grinned before turning to Naruto and mouthing 'respect' only to receive a glare in return.

"Hello Gamakashi, I hope that Gamabunta isn't angry about the sake?" When Gamakashi smirked they could see Jiraiya shiver for a second. "W-well, this brat here wanted to summon the contract."

Gamakashi quirked an eyebrow and started looking over Naruto with a scrutinising gaze. He nodded his head before his body expanded slightly and the scroll unrolled. Naruto took a look at the bottom of the scroll where he saw a couple of signatures with the most recent one being Minato Namikaze... the fourth Hokage. His eyes darted back to Jiraiya who smirked again.

"Just sign it in blood kid, when you are done I will teach the summoning itself." Naruto nodded and used a kunai to pierce his finger and signed his name on the scroll. When he finished Gamakashi rolled up the scroll and with a mock salute was gone in a poof of smoke.

Naruto had no problems in remembering the handsigns and with a couple of tries they decided it was good enough to try to summon a toad.

"Don't forget the blood sacrifice and whatever appears don't be disappointed, it is your first try after all. If you do manage to summon something remember to not insult the toads." Jiraiya said from Naruto's side. Naruto started to focus and did his best to pull as much chakra into the Jutsu as he could without losing control. With the blood sacrifice supplied he slammed his hand into the ground and watched as the web of the summoning seal spread outwards from his hand before there was a pop and a cloud of smoke. Naruto tried to not look disappointed when the smoke cleared to show a toad about the size of Akamaru. It was orange with purple markings on its head and body. It pulled its head up to see his summoner.

"Yo" the small toad said with a wave of its hand. Meanwhile Jiraiya's smile only widened. The kid summoned an actual toad on his first try. It wasn't unheard of but it was still an accomplishment.

"Hey, I'm Naruto Uzumaki. You?" Naruto asked with a grin even if he was a little disappointed he couldn't summon any of the toads he heard about from Jiraiya stories. The small toad moved around in its place as it probably wasn't sure how to exactly behave around humans. It finally stuck out its small hand towards Naruto.

"I'm Gamakichi. I'll tell pops about our new summoner when I get back." Gamakichi said as Naruto shook his hand.

"Pops?" Naruto asked, curious about this new toad. The toad blinked before it started speaking again.

"Oh I meant my dad, Gamabunta. Well cya!" and he was gone in a burst of smoke. Naruto turned around when he heard Jiraiya speak.

"You need to remember to treat this little guy extra carefully kid." Jiraiya said with a grin. When Naruto eyes told him to elaborate he continued. "He seems to be one of the younger sons of the boss summon of the toads, Gamabunta..." Naruto's face lost a bit of colour while Jiraiya started walking back to the village, laughing heartily.

Today was the day. Huge crowds of shinobi and civilians alike from all around the elemental nations have gathered to watch the show, to see where they should go to with assignments and missions or which village to move to as the strongest one would surely be the safest. The stadium was already full, same as the streets around the stadium. Everyone trying to get inside or closer to the big screens mounted in front of the stadium which would be broadcasting the fights. It was minutes until the first round started and the katana wielding Kiri Shinobi was already waiting inside the ring.

His blonde opponent meanwhile was finishing a cup of instant ramen inside his apartment. Noticing the time he threw the empty cup into the overflowing bin and called for Yuki who was sleeping soundly on the couch. They got ready. Yuki bit part of the jacket to catch the ride while Naruto focused on the ram sign.

"Shunshin no Jutsu!" and the apartment was empty.

**To Be Continued...**


	8. Beginning of the Beast

"So Sarutobi, could you tell me more about this boy that my genin will be fighting? I heard some rumours here and there since I arrived." Said the Mizukage from her seat in the Kage box overlooking the arena where Kikaku and Genma were waiting for Naruto to appear.

"Naruto Uzumaki, I must say I was curious about him as well." Piped in the Kazekage from behind his veiled Kage hat.

"Naruto is... special and certainly unpredictable. I can't tell you much but even if I could I don't know much myself and after this month's training I can only wonder how strong he is." Sarutobi said trying to look indifferent yet couldn't stop the small prideful smile to creep onto his face.

"And an Uzumaki. We used to house a couple Uzumakis in Kiri but as you know they have very prominent traits and were one of the first targets during the purges." Both the Mizukage and the Hokage and looked a bit mournful with the mention of the now gone whirlpool country. "But I didn't expect to see one in Konoha. Did he ever ask about his clan seeing as he is the last one?"

"No, I do not think Naruto even knows that the Uzumakis were a clan and had a village." Sarutobi answered calmly. The Mizukage turned her head and watched the Hokage with a curious expression.

"And you never thought about informing him?"

"You see there are certain laws preventing me from doing just that but if someone else slipped in a word or two then I'm sure it would be fine but that is just between us Kages." The Hokage said with a smirk forming on his face. Slowly a matching smirk formed on the Mizukage's face.

"I see" Meanwhile the Kazekage was absorbing everything he heard, things were not going with his plan exactly like he wanted them to but there was no going back now.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"First match of the first round. Kikaku of the mist against Naruto Uzumaki of the leaf." Exclaimed Genma using a sound enhancing Jutsu. As the crowds realised who they were cheering on the claps started slowing down until they were nearly nonexistent except for the foreigners and a few of the ninja. Naruto who so far was playing the staring game with Kikaku scoffed at that while Kikaku and the genin waiting for their fights looked around slightly confused.

"Go!" and with that Genma jumped back to the balcony where the other participants were waiting.

"Yuki I will call you if I need you but I would like to fight this one alone." Naruto said to the fox sitting beside him while never taking his eyes off Kikaku who just unsheathed His Katana without taking any stance. Yuki growled before running back to the entrance and seemingly falling asleep. Naruto reached for his pocket and took out a kunai slightly different than normal. It was a bit longer than the standard one and had a slight curve to it. This made it less effective as a thrown weapon and made it more of a close combat tool.

"The clothes, the Kunai. Change the forehead protector and I could mistake you for one of us." Kikaku said with a raised eyebrow.

"Long story." Naruto said back with a grin before flipping the kunai into a backwards grip and dashing forward giving Kikaku barely enough time to get into a stance and parry with his sword. Naruto kept aiming for the vitals as he continued slipping in and out of range of the katana while staying on the offensive. He needed to find a blind spot or a weakness before he bothered with a Jutsu. Kikaku meanwhile was taking in Naruto's movements and attacks while defending without getting himself tired too much. The power behind that kunai was much more than he had expected. Deciding to finally do something he started charging his second affinity into his katana.

Naruto noticed a second too late that the katana started slightly sparking with electricity but it was too late as it went through his kunai like a knife through butter and before he could redirect the strike he was roundhouse kicked into his ribs which pushed him away a couple of meters. Effectively this was the first actual hit in the fight.

"Hmh seems I need more Kenjutsu training than I thought..." Naruto said to himself before sighing. He formed the familiar handsign and 4 clones appeared, creating a large cloud of smoke around him. The clones nodded their heads before dashing straight back to Kikaku and engaging him with kunai again. The remaining Naruto took a second to concentrate before coating his kunai in ice and jumping in just as the third clone exploded. The fight started speeding up and soon only the ninja were able to follow every move until the two opponents locked their weapons, both breathing more heavily. The strange thing was that so far only 1 hit actually landed and if things continued then this could be a long fight. As the katana and kunai were locket together and neither ninja wanted to let go and retreat Naruto took the advantage and started making one handed seals. Kikaku was startled for a second before he started pushing more lightning chakra into his katana. Naruto took his chance and jumped before finishing the final seal.

Inside the Kage box the Mizukage gasped as Kikaku was surrounded by 8 ice mirrors, all of which had the reflection of one Uzumaki Naruto.

Kikaku and many of the ninja were confused as to what sort of technique this was. He had never seen anything like this and it only made him more paranoid as the reflections of his opponent gave him a wink and mouthed _'Don't blink'_.

Naruto knew that he couldn't keep this up for long. He was nowhere near mastering the technique as he could only create up to 10 of the mirrors and his speed of moving between them was not even close to Haku's but it would have to do. Hopefully the shock effect of the technique would help as a distraction.

Kikaku barely moved his katana fast enough to deflect Naruto and his kunai who just changed course and moved into another mirror. He heard a quiet movement sound behind him and moved just in time to dodge most of the barrage of the ice senbon. A Couple of them had managed to hit his arm but when he went to pull them out he found nothing but water and then pain as his shoulder started feeling cold and slightly numb. He had to do something fast as Naruto forced him to dodge more and more senbon barrages and melee kunai attacks. It was then that he noticed that Naruto was slowing down. The strikes were still fast but they were becoming manageable. It was only a matter of time before the Jutsu would fall.

Soon the Kages and the audience saw as the mirrors melted down and now Kikaku and Naruto were staring down each other, both breathing heavily and Kikaku clutching his now not functioning left arm. They both readied their weapons and rushed each other, the collision of the blades creating a dust cloud. When the dust cleared Kikaku had his katana at Naruto throat. Genma was about to announce Kikaku the winner when a second Naruto shimmered from what seemed like some sort of invisibility Jutsu behind Kikaku with his ice enhanced kunai curved around Kikaku's neck. The first Naruto pushed himself just enough for the blade to touch his neck and burst into smoke showing that it was a clone all along. Naruto pressed a second kunai to Kikaku's ribs making him flinch slightly. Slowly Kikaku raised his hand.

"Proctor, I yield."

The crowds burst into applause as even the ones who hated Naruto with a passion had to agree that it wasn't a bad fight. Genma jumped down and nodded to the both of them. Naruto released his hold and they both took a few steps back from each other before Kikaku stuck out his hand. Naruto looked at him for a second before grinning and returning the gesture. As Genma started announcing the next match they both left the field.

"Come on, I will go the medics with you to heal those ice burns." Naruto said while looking at the shoulder where his ice senbon hit. When Kikaku asked him why he wanted to come Naruto answered that he wasn't really interested in matches other than his own and that the medics might need him to describe the nature of the wound.

While Kikaku was getting patched up and healed he looked towards Naruto and then he cast his gaze to the floor and sighed.

"I got to cocky and overconfident with my abilities. My dream is to become one of the swordsmen of the mist." This got Naruto's attention.

"Is that why you didn't use any Jutsu?" Naruto asked and Kikaku nodded.

"I kind of wanted to show off my Kenjutsu to the Mizukage." And from there they launched into a conversation with Naruto trying to learn as much as he could about the swordsmen and Kikaku about those strange ice techniques.

Inside the Kage box the Mizukage was still shocked. That clan was dead for years. No survivors were left just as with most other large clans in Kiri but here in Konoha she found a boy who is an Uzumaki and had the kekkei genkai of the Yuki clan and yet looked like a member of neither of the clans. She turned to the Hokage to ask him about this but he just shook his head. For now she had to settle for waiting and asking this Naruto Uzumaki after the exams and she better get some answers. Mei Terumi was neither a patient woman nor one who accepted no for an answer.

When Kikaku and Naruto arrived back at the room with other contestants they realised that getting caught up in their talk they missed out on nearly three matches. Shikamaru had nearly won against Temari but gave up in the end and that Shizuka of the mist and Shino had ended with Shino winning by draining her of all chakra but stepping out of the tournament due to his own wounds being too big to continue. As the two arrived at the balcony they looked onto the field only to see Neji being held up on his hands in the air by Gaara's sand. Gaara's face was crumbling revealing it as a kind of sand armour. The maniacal grin and look on Gaara's face only increased when he started speaking.

"Mother wants your blood; she wants to feel your bones crush in those precious hands of yours! Yes!" The ninja flinched while some of the civilians fainted or screamed when the sand closed in followed by a loud crunching sound as the bones shattered into hundreds of shards. Neji screamed a blood boiling scream and his blood painted the sand and the ground below him dark red. It was then that Gaara found himself surrounded by multiple Konoha ninja with Guy's hand tightening around his throat. Gaara smirked before forcing his sand back into the gourd and dropping the mutilated body into the ready arms of Lee who together with Tenten had ran out after their sensei. The three cast the last glare at Gaara who continued smirking before turning and running towards the hospital.

It was then that Genma announced a 15 minute break before the next match. Meanwhile the biggest question running through Naruto's head was _'Could I have turned into someone like that?'_ As he listened to the conversations around him, all concerning the demon and how something like that should have been put down some part of him realised that he might never be accepted.

The break was over and now the field was occupied by Uchiha Sasuke and Rock Lee. Sasuke had arrived a minute before the match had started. The two were staring at each other and Lee was about to start before Sasuke interrupted him.

"You shouldn't bother trying; you can't hope to defeat me with just taijutsu." Lee was still angry from what happened to Neji and now someone here was as if spitting on his dream. "I won't even need my sharingan to defeat..." Sasuke was cut off as a foot connected with his face and he rolled a couple metres across the dirt.

"You can't tell me what I can do or not! I will prove to everyone that hard work can make you just as powerful as any kekkei genkai and that I can be a great ninja with just taijutsu, no matter what you say! Let me show you how bright are my flames of youth!" Lee finished his small speech and settled into the strong fist stance.

Sasuke picked himself off the ground before spitting out some blood and setting his glare on Lee, showing off his fully developed sharingan. Suddenly they dashed full speed while meeting in the middle. Sasuke's sharingan already dissecting and copying Lee's moves. The strong fist continued its assault in a whirlwind of hits that could probably finish the fight if they connected but they didn't as Sasuke continued dodging and parrying. The frown on his face showing his displeasure on being on the defensive.

Finally seeing an opening a quick strike to the chest manages to push Lee off balance and push him back. Sasuke smirked at seeing his chance but a surge of chakra coming from his opponent stops him from rushing in for the finish. The ground beneath Lee caved in just enough to be noticeable.

Most ninja watching the match were amazed that such a young boy could release even the first gate.

The two rushed back in and continued fighting in taijutsu, now dealing blow for blow until one of Lee's kicks managed to get through and was followed with a spinning kick which sent Sasuke skidding on the ground. Both of them were now panting from the increasing exhaustion but neither was done with the other. Sasuke bursts through a series of handsigns which send a series of small fireballs at Lee.

The audience watched in awe as Lee managed to dodge three barrages of Phoenix Sage Fire until dashing back towards Sasuke with a high leap, aiming to finish the fight fast. As a last resort Sasuke fires a point blank grand fireball and the explosion throws both of them backwards while also pushing up a cloud of dust.

Most ninja by now can feel more chakra being released and when the dust settles they see why. Lee had released his second gate and Sasuke's seal had managed to break through and covered him the black flame like markings, the three black tomoe spinning wildly inside his sharingan. Sasuke was about to run in for the finish when suddenly Lee's eyes closed and he dropped on the ground. Through his shock he didn't notice the marking retreat into the cursed seal on his neck. Genma chose this moment to jump down and announce the winner.

"Sasuke Uchiha of the leaf is the winner of the fifth match!" and the crowds burst into applause for the Last Uchiha who didn't really feel like he won anything, especially after entering the competitors room and overhearing Guy saying that Lee was exhausted from training and with the stress from nearly losing a teammate had forced the gates open too fast. It was then that he realised that even after the month of training with kakashi he still could have lost.

Meanwhile Naruto was thinking about his possible opponents. The possible options were Sasuke, Gaara or Temari. All of those fights seemed doable especially since Sasuke and Temari were already tired from their previous matches and against Gaara he had 'inside' help. Genma called out him and the three others to the middle of the stadium to announce the next round matches but something in his head kept telling him that something was really wrong.

Back inside the Kage box Orochimaru grinned like a child under the Kazekage's veil. Soon Konoha will be destroyed and then nothing would be able to stop him from achieving immortality. Gaara, his biggest distraction, was in just the right place. With a single tap of his hand the signal to the sound ninja stationed around the stadium and around Konoha was sent and the plan sprung into action.

Feathers start falling from the air and slowly nearly all of the civilians and at least half of the ninja get caught in the forced in a forced sleep Genjutsu. Panic arises among those who did not succumb to the Genjutsu with the final straw to general chaos being the arrival of sound and sand ninja. All around Konoha Platoons of sand and sound ninja started their siege on the vital points of the village.

Genma is immediately engaged in a fight by Baki, the jonin sensei of the sand siblings. Temari leaves the field to according to plan and now only Gaara, Naruto and Sasuke are left in the field.

Gaara's sand starts swirling around him, the maniacal smile already present on his face. Just then Naruto stops Sasuke who was about to charge in to fight Gaara.

"Leave him to me Sasuke; you don't know what you are getting into here!" Naruto shouts while keeping a hand on Sasuke's shoulder that by now was trembling in anger. He turned around sharply and the two stared each other in the eyes. "You won't be able to defeat him, not like this!" The sharingan kept spinning wildly, as if processing the new information before Sasuke scoffed and ran out of the stadium following Temari's chakra trail.

While Naruto was forced to dodge multiple sand shuriken shot by Gaara who was gaining more and more sand around him another battle was being fought on top of a nearby building. Inside a bright purple barrier, Mei Terumi and Hiruzen Sarutobi were fighting Hiruzen's wayward student; Orochimaru.

"Have you fallen so low to desecrate the graves of the dead just to further your goals?!" Sarutobi shouted while getting into a fighting stance with his adamantine staff Enma. Orochimaru's answer was a chuckle as the resurrected first and second Hokage's started moving forward. "Mizukage-sama if you could take care of the second?" Mei nodded and burst into action, the only thing saving Orochimaru from the burst of lava being a wood wall constructed by the first Hokage.

Naruto was getting pushed back and that was not a good thing. Gaara had already started transforming, the one tails taking more and more control and if this didn't stop then there would be nothing Naruto could do. He hated that he had to do it but there was no other way, he had to ask the fox for help. As if on cue, the second the thought left him he felt a surge of power and felt all his wounds close up. His nails turned into claws, his face and teeth turned more feral and his eyes showed him for what he truly was.

"Time to put that Inuzuka training to a test!" Naruto exclaimed as he dropped down onto all fours and charged straight at Gaara, dodging multiple sand shuriken on the way and nearly smashing his fist into Gaara's stomach. If he got this close then he could get closer.

Naruto jumped back as Gaara started his assault with lances of sand and while mid air he shot a high pressured stream of water which targeted the main body of the sand. While not doing much damage the sand slowly soaked up all the water and its movement had become more sluggish and this became apparent as Naruto had to dodge several more sand lances. The fight continued and Naruto only saved himself from getting stuck inside a sand tomb by freezing the soaked sand which was trying to trap his feet. Naruto then surprised Gaara by going straight forward again, running along the sand lances as the water froze beneath Naruto's feet as he ran across them. This time Naruto's fist did connect with Gaara's gut and thanks to the Kyuubi it sent the unstable host straight into a wall. The dust cloud slowly cleared to reveal Gaara, knocked out, being slowly consumed by his sand. It started moving over him and covering him in a form of a cocoon.

Naruto knew he shouldn't have but still moved forward and barely dodged a sand spear aimed at his head. This was not enough and he needed more if he wanted to defeat Gaara now. Again as if the fox could read his thoughts the foul chakra washed over him and poured into his veins. Slowly a fox shaped, blood red chakra cloak was covering Naruto, one tail swishing wildly behind him as he crouched on all fours. He felt anger, he wanted to crush this pathetic excuse of a Bijuu in front of him and show him who was the strongest of the Bijuu... but that didn't make sense, why would he want to do that. As Naruto's mind was battling this new presence inside his head the sand around Gaara started reforming and took on the shape of the one tails.

When Naruto felt the earth beneath him move he realised what was happening but it was too late as a giant sand claw smashed him into one of the stadium walls. Climbing out of the rubble he clutched his head as he tried to clear his head, he wanted to kill everyone who had ever angered him, bathe in their blood as their families watched so they could feel the pain that they dealt him throughout the years. It wasn't fair, why was it always him... no, he had a mission to do now. He wasn't alone now and he could not disappoint the people who did put their trust in him. Unknown to Naruto the cloak started losing its blood red hue and instead started changing into a snow white.

Naruto was now standing slightly hunched over, the snow white chakra tail swishing behind him as his blood red eyes watched the one tailed tanuki destroy most of the stadium walls and the surrounding buildings. He heard some yips and growls and felt lick his hand and when he looked down he saw no other than Yuki. When the invasion started he thought what happened to her but he knew that she could take care of herself. Naruto kneeled down in front of her, now looking eye to eye and patter her on the head.

"Now Yuki I need you to do something really important. Go and find Jiraiya, bring him here as fast as you can." Naruto said, his face betraying nothing as he heard screams of death and anguish coming from the direction the one tails went towards. She seemed to want to refuse and stay and help but inside she knew that against an opponent like that she wouldn't be much of a help. Yuki nodded her head, gave Naruto a lick on the cheek, sniffed the air a couple of times before sprinting to where the old pervert's scent was the strongest and freshest. Naruto grinned before cracking his knuckles and jumping down after the berserk Bijuu.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

The second Hokage had been defeated and the controller kunai removed from his neck but the first was proving a problem. Mei's red hair flew through the air as she dodged yet another series of wooden spikes while trying to melt through the first's defences with her lava. Even if she did not manage to defeat him then they would still slowly win as Orochimaru's chakra was slowly getting sucked dry by the edo tensei, constant attacks by Hiruzen certainly didn't help. It was only a matter of time before this fight and the invasion was over. The only variable was the amount of dead Shinobi and civilians.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto kept running across the rooftops as the giant tanuki continued crashing the area surrounding the exam arena. For now he was powerless and could only watch as ninja from both sides were crushed beneath the sand. It was then that he noticed a small spot of red in between the mass of sand and the dark blue markings that covered the bijuu's giant body. It took him a second to realize that it was Gaara and that he seemed to be asleep. It was then that he remembered what Jiraiya told him about Gaara specifically... the boy never sleeps and he transformed when he got knocked out. Maybe that was the answer, he had nothing better to try and now he needed a distraction. As if someone granted him his wish Jiraiya arrived with Yuki. They were on the other side of the Bijuu and probably haven't seen him yet but hopefully Jiraiya would summon a toad that could help them.

The unique sound of a summoning Jutsu and the giant cloud of smoke was enough to make the tanuki change its target from the buildings onto the toad boss summon. The giant toad did not look as Naruto expected it to. The giant pipe looked strange on a toad but it seemed that the most powerful people and beings in the ninja world had their strange quirks. The tanuki fired giant air bullets from its mouth but they only managed to push back Gamabunta. When Naruto looked back to Jiraiya he saw that he was already gone, probably to do whatever he was doing before. It was up to him again. He had to get to that toad and tell it his plan.

Naruto continued jumping across the rooftops at an incredible speed thanks to Kyuubi's chakra and in a matter of seconds he was on top of the giant toad's head, trying to stay on while the boss summon struggled with the one tailed beast. Gamabunta must have noticed him but made no move to get him off.

"You must be that new summoner Gamakichi had told me about!" He shouted, trying to get over sounds of fighting and collapsing buildings. He wanted to say something else but shook his head to stop himself. "So do you have any plan or are you just going to sit there and do nothing. Jiraiya said a lot of good things about you and I don't want to die fighting some stupid tanuki!" Naruto growled at before getting closer to the toads ear.

"Try to immobilize him and hold his claws away from me. If I can get to that red spot on his head I think I might be able to finish this!" Naruto shouted and hope the toad heard. The only sign he got was a nod of the head which he felt moving under his feet but it was enough and again he sprinted off the toad and onto the nearby buildings. He had to approach the tanuki in a way to shorten the time he had to spend walking on that sand or else he might be noticed and that tail definitely didn't look friendly. He didn't have much time as Gamabunta had already severed one of the beast's arms and soon he would have to play his part.

Naruto found a good enough spot from a corner of what used to be a tall apartment block just as Gamabunta stabbed the one tails through his open maw and pinned it to the ground, it was now or never. A bit of a run up and pushing as much chakra as he could he jumped off aiming straight for the spot between the one tail's eyes where Gaara was located. It wasn't a soft landing and as soon as he touched the sand it started to try to restrain him while lances and spikes of sand were aimed and shot at him seemingly automatically as a self defence. He started slashing and turning with his claws and tail to get rid of the sand and did so in the last second, escaping just as the area he was just standing on collapsed on itself and would have sucked anything inside. Gaara was only meters away and Naruto broke into a dash before moving into a slide and then jumping away as his foot connected with Gaara's chin. The force behind the hit pushed nearly all of his body out of the sand and the tanuki's eyes widened as he felt his control weaken. Gaara's eyes opened and then widened in pain as the Bijuu started dissolving into sand until it finally disappeared with only a mauled Gaara was left in a heap of sand looking fearfully at Naruto.

Naruto continued walking forwards and felt the chakra cloak recede. Gamabunta had already gone back to the toad home world and now it was just the two of them left. Gaara continued to scramble away as Naruto continued to walk forward until Gaara's back hit some broken rubble. Naruto surprised him by not killing him and instead grabbing his hand and pulling him up.

"B-but why are you helping me... don't you want to kill me, don't you want to get rid of m-me?" Gaara questioned Naruto in the weakest voice Naruto ever heard from the boy and he could only shake his head.

"I could have been like you but I'm not, I chose a different path and... and I believe that people deserve a second chance, especially people like us." IT was only then that Gaara really saw the blood red eyes and the claws. Slowly he nodded and was about to say something before his siblings arrived, grabbed him by the shoulders and carried him away. Naruto didn't make a move to follow as he felt the last of Kyuubi's chakra escape him before darkness claimed him as his body fell down onto the heap of sand.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

It was three days later that Naruto opened his eyes only to see the very familiar white ceiling and the horrid smell of the hospital. He sighed slowly and looked around the room. A single bed, quiet, away from the rest and no signs of anyone visiting. Why did he ever bother checking when this never changed. The doors opening startled him and in walked a tall redhead with a long sleeved, dark blue dress that hung to her figure just right. His mouth was moving but making no sound as he continued to stare at her until her giggle brought him back into the room back from the bad thoughts _'Damn you Jiraiya!'_. He then also noticed that Yuki had ran into the room as well and was nudging his hand with her nose while her tail swished wildly in happiness. Naruto grinned and ruffled the fur on her head before turning back to the woman who was still standing there, waiting for something.

"Uhm, hello. My name is Uzumaki Naruto." Naruto said while sticking his hand out, only then noticing that the whole right arm was bandaged.

"Mei, Mei Terumi." Mei answered while shaking his hand.

_-'She would probably try to beat me up if I ever told her what I thought of her back then, the first time I saw her, but then again I was a teenage boy. Now I know she is a bunch of trouble and the red hair is actually a sign of the demon hidden underneath all that beauty. She refuses up to this day but I still think she was related to the Uzumaki in some way. Ha, looking back it's easy to see what her motives were but back then I was still a pretty dense kid...'_

"So, uhm, why are you here?" Mei looked at him for a second before sitting down on the chair that was standing beside the bed while Naruto continued to look slightly confused. Yuki curled herself up at the bottom of the bed and immediately fell asleep.

"The Hokage asked me to tell you something that might be important to you." Naruto wanted to say something but instead waited for her to continue. "What do you know about your clan?" She watched as Naruto got even more confused before his eyes grew wide, a sliver of hope still hanging on. "The Uzumakis were the leading clan of the whirlpool village, I can't say much more but I'm sure that from here you will be able to do some research yourself." Before Naruto could ask a question she stood up and headed for the door. "Oh and if you ever want to visit the whirlpool village then you can always come to me."

"Come to you? I don't even know where you live." Naruto said truly confused. Mei stopped moving out the doors and looked back at Naruto smiling.

"To Kirigakure of course, I'm the Mizukage after all" and with that she left and it was the second time that day that Naruto imitated a fish. It took him a couple of minutes to gather himself before he stood up and started putting on his clothes. He used the basic scan Jutsu he learned from Haku's scrolls and thanks to the Kyuubi he was fully healed. He was so caught up in his thoughts about his clan, the fact that maybe someone survived and that maybe he still had family somewhere out there that he didn't notice Jiraiya walk in through the window. At first he got startled by the sudden appearance but Jiraiya facial expression did not look good.

"Kid, sit down. You need to hear this but it might be hard to take in." He sounded sad, in all the time he knew Jiraiya he never sounded sad or anything close to it so he followed his advice and sat down on the bed. The thoughts about the Uzumaki clan slowly leaving his head as he started thinking of the different scenarios of what could have happened. Naruto however was not ready for what he heard next and in that moment he felt his world crash around him.

"It's about Hiruzen, he fought with Orochimaru and now he is in a coma. I... the medics say that he will probably never wake up..."

**To Be Continued...**


	9. Unexpected reunions

There was a long silence during which Jiraiya couldn't even look into Naruto's eyes. Naruto wanted to scream and shout that it wasn't true and that if it was he would never give up until his jiji was back on his feet, he wanted to cry for the first time in a long time but then he remembered what the third had told him. _'Naruto, its okay to cry. It doesn't make you weak but if you can put that same energy and feeling into bettering yourself then maybe you can prevent it from happening again.'_That was just after he failed the graduation exam for the first time and it was then that he promised he would never give up, a promise of a life time... but if the person you made the promise to isn't around to see you succeed, to be proud of you, then does it really matter...

"I... is there anything we can do?" Naruto asked. He tried to stay calm but couldn't stop the light sob from escaping. Jiraiya looked back at him and smiled.

"That is why I came here; we are going on a mission to bring back my teammate." Jiraiya paused and then continued after seeing the questioning eyes. "There are a couple of reasons; we need someone to act even as a temporary Hokage." He expected Naruto to explode but all he got was a weak nod. "And she is the best medic in the elemental nations, if there is someone who could wake the old man up then it's her." Naruto nodded and stood up then started walking towards the window.

"Can we leave right now?"

Jiraiya was a bit shocked. "Don't you want to visit the third first before we leave?" Naruto shook his head.

"I might not show it that much but I know how the village works. The third can't protect me anymore, the less time I spend in this village the better." He stayed quiet while Jiraiya didn't know what to say. "Also do you really think they would let the demon visit the comatose Hokage?" By now Naruto was half way out the window. "Which gate are we leaving through?" Jiraiya hesitated for a second before answering.

"The south gate, in 15 minutes." Naruto nodded and then he was gone. Leaving Jiraiya thinking about the future and how much more the boy could take.

Fifteen minutes later Jiraiya arrived at the south gate only to see Naruto arguing with Yuki, he only assumed that she was mad at Naruto for just getting up and leaving the hospital but there wasn't much he could get out from only half of the conversation where every second word was 'sorry'.

"You ready kid? It's a long trip to our first location." Naruto and Yuki whipped their heads and for a second looked like a deer caught with in a flashy Jutsu. Naruto smiled lightly and patted the scroll hanging from his back.

They hadn't been walking for that long but the silence was unbearable to Jiraiya. Naruto, the kid who always wanted to talk, to learn about what lies outside of Konoha was silent. That was not good. Over thinking your problems did not lead to good results most of the time. It was then that Jiraiya decided that he had to give Naruto something to do and it was just the right time as they were about to reach the first small town.

They were already travelling for a week, moving from town to town as Jiraiya contacted his spy network. Following Tsunade was both easy and incredibly hard at the same time. She left a trail nearly impossible to miss but she also moved a lot and moved fast. Never spending more than three days in each town before moving onto the next just to lose yet another part of her family fortune in gambling and sake. The mood lightened a little after the first couple days and as Naruto focused on the new training that Jiraiya assigned to him.

"Damn it! How am I supposed to burst this water balloon? 'Just rotate your chakra'... How am I supposed to burst a balloon by rotating chakra?!" Jiraiya cringed as he heard Naruto shout at the poor water balloon again. He was close to doing it a couple of times and that is an achievement. He himself needed a month just to figure out the rotation yet Naruto was nearly there in less than a week. Yet he was getting frustrated, the anger was coming back and interfering but this had to be something he did alone. Jiraiya head jerked back to the small field Naruto was standing in when he heard a celebratory shout, only to see Naruto jump around with his hands in the air before he fell down on his back. After all he had been trying to do this for the whole day and probably wasted more chakra than was needed and was exhausted. He did deserve some rest after all.

It was three days later that the group changed direction, going North West towards Tanzaku Gai, after Jiraiya received a messenger Hawk with Tsunade's new location. It was also then that Naruto could finally show Jiraiya that he could burst the water balloon multiple times without problems, even if he had to use both hands to do it. The spirits of the trio were higher than ever with their plans going better than expected yet none of them could shake off the feeling of an oncoming storm.

Four days later Naruto, Jiraiya and Yuki found themselves inside the town of Tanzaku Gai. It seemed that they had arrived just as one of the regional festivals had begun. The streets were full of people and stands, the delicious smell of food of all kinds rolling around in the air, the low sounds of music coming from somewhere near the centre of the town. Naruto turned his head to face Jiraiya as he heard his mentor sigh.

"Ugh, this makes it this much complicated." Naruto nodded, finding one person in the crowds of hundreds, maybe thousands would be hard. Jiraiya had shows described Tsunade's appearance to him somewhere along their way. "Normally I would have loved to visit some of those bars; I can imagine the atmosphere and the girls..." Naruto coughed to bring Jiraiya back before he really stormed off into one of the bars in this place. "Well, you know how she looks. Search every bar, restaurant and any place that does gambling. Check in with the hotels as well. The faster we get this done, the faster we can get back to the village." Naruto continued to look at Jiraiya until Jiraiya grinned "Do your thing kid." Naruto grinned in return before focusing on a single hand seal before twenty shadow clones appeared behind him. The trio looked on as the clones moved into the crowd and dispersed to search the city.

Naruto and Jiraiya were now standing in a clearing just outside the town; Naruto couldn't wait to get onto the next step of the technique Jiraiya was teaching him. According to the pervy sage he had gotten the first stage good enough to proceed but they needed new equipment for the second stage. After using water balloons for the first stage, rubber balls didn't seem that really weird for the second part.

"So I should spin the chakra in a way similar to how I did before but I need to put in more chakra." Naruto asked while eyeing the rubber ball in his hand. He saw how Jiraiya made the ball burst just seconds before and he could feel that the amount of chakra he applied was many times than what was needed to burst the balloon.

"Let's say you are about right. Have fun." Jiraiya shot back cheekily which got him a glare. He chuckled before deciding to lay down, maybe continued on one of his books... he then saw Yuki napping in the shade of a tree. _'Smart fox'_ a ninja never has enough sleep.

"No... Girls please don't stop... there is enough of me for all of you..." That was too much. Jiraiya yelped when he felt a foot connect with his ribs. He turned his glare to the smirking blonde standing over him.

"You know I wondered what goes on in that head of yours but now... I don't think I want to know anymore." Naruto faked a shudder. His expression then turned more serious. "I think I found her." This got Jiraiya on his feet immediately.

"You sure it was her?" Naruto nodded.

"Blonde hair put into two ponytails, green robes, amber eyes, the gem on the forehead. I'm pretty sure it was her." Jiraiya nodded, that had to be Tsunade.

"Where was it?" Naruto closed his eyes to sort through the hours of memories.

"A small bar about ten minutes from here, she was arguing with some black haired girl who was holding a pig." Jiraiya nodded again _'That must be Shizune.'_

"Let's go before we lose her again." Naruto grinned before jumping into the trees, followed by Yuki and Jiraiya.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Tsunade was having one of the best days in years. Why had she never came around to this town before she really didn't know. _'Maybe because it's too close to Konoha'_. Tsunade sighed and ordered another bottle of sake. Shizune already brought her mood down when she came running and shouting about drinking too much. No, today she would have her fun. She didn't notice a blonde teenager and her white haired teammate enter the bar yet she had the feeling that soon she would be very angry.

Jiraiya noticed Tsunade the second he entered the bar, she was sitting alone in one of the booths. Naruto was right, yet the pile of sake bottles unnerved him somewhat. She always liked to drink and with those medical Jutsu of hers she could drink much more but this... how the mighty have fallen. Naruto and Jiraiya slipped into the seats opposite Tsunade and waited. She didn't even raise her gaze from her sake cup.

"If you ask me out again then I will make sure that you won't leave this bar still a man!" Tsunade nearly shouted.

"Long time no see Tsunade-chan." Tsunade's head snapped up at the voice of her old teammate. She rubbed her eyes, her face showing nothing. She put on hand on her stomach and a second later it glowed green. Her eyes seemed to clear and the signs of alcohol slowly faded away.

"Aw, you never taught me how to do the sobering Jutsu." Jiraiya said, maybe trying to lighten the mood but all three of them knew that it didn't work. Tsunade's questioning gaze bore into Jiraiya eyes and then flicked to the blonde who now was sitting with his side facing her, looking outside the bar. Tsunade's eyes snapped back to the toad sage.

"What do you want Jiraiya?" Tsunade said calmly but everyone could hear the displeasure in her voice.

"I'm going to cut this short, Orochimaru invaded Konoha." Tsunade snorted before filling another cup with sake and downing it in one go.

"And? You wanted to invite me for a team gathering?" Jiraiya's teeth were grinding at her tone.

"No, we need you back. Sarutobi-sensei is stuck in a coma. He fought Orochimaru and managed to nearly kill him but the fight took too much out of him. Not to mention the overfilled hospitals, hundreds are in critical condition." He waited for her to say something but she stayed quiet. "The elders also decided that you would be the best choice for the next Hokage." Jiraiya finished and followed by a cup of sake himself.

"Oh no. You won't pull me into this! When I left the village all those years ago I swore I would never come back and I don't plan on doing it now." Jiraiya was getting angrier by the minute now.

"You are a medic, you swore to protect and heal and Konoha is still your village. Are you really going to let so many die for no reason! And after everything that sensei did for us!"

"Sensei was a fool for becoming the Hokage again! He signed a death contract when he took the position. All Hokage's do so. They take office and then 'die for the village'. Well I prefer to live." By now the argument turned into a shouting match and the surrounding are cleared of people who either left or moved to a different booth. Before Jiraiya could answer Naruto nearly jumped over the table. Tsunade could feel the anger as she stared into the blood red eyes. Slowly Naruto lowered himself back onto the seat. His eyes changed to the usual blue.

"I think you were wrong Jiraiya; you told me about the great Tsunade, one of the great sannin but her? She is just some drunk, a coward wallowing in the past. How can she be a Hokage if she doesn't even understand the sacrifices of those before her." Now Naruto was staring into Tsunade's eyes again. "They gave up their lives so you and I and everyone else in the village could live on, and you just sit and throw their memory into the mud!" Tsunade grew a tick mark; this brat was insulting her as if he knew anything about her.

_-'Those words are still stuck in my head. We both were wrong. She was living in the past, living a lie. I was living on false ideals, ones that I did not understand until the very end... How true those words were yet how much it hurts to say them now...'_

"Listen here you brat! I lost everything to that village! You don't know anything about me. Do you even know what sacrifice means?" Tsunade expected a lot of things but not for the blonde in front of her laugh. It wasn't a happy laugh. Instead it was shallow, empty, dead.

"You know who... what I am so don't even start your lecture about sacrifice and the village." Naruto stood up then started moving away towards the exit of the bar. He turned his head back to Jiraiya. "Don't bother, she isn't fit to be Hokage." And with that he left. He needed to clear his head and some training would do wonders for that. Maybe he could continue working on the second stage of that Jutsu?

Back at the bar both Tsunade and Jiraiya were quietly sitting in the same booth. Neither had said a word since Naruto left.

"So he is..." Jiraiya nodded.

"Yeah. Now pour me another one." Tsunade smirked and poured herself and Jiraiya another cup of sake. What they did not notice was the pair of sharingan eyes observing them from the bar on the other side of the street.

Naruto wanted to be frustrated and angry at the orange rubber ball in his hand but he remembered that it did not help him at all when training with the water balloon. He had to concentrate, clear his head. _'Now slowly push in more chakra'_ he could feel the chakra churning and spinning slowly inside the ball but only going in one direction. With his second hand he started sending chakra at seemingly random points on the rubber ball. Now he could feel it working, the chakra was spinning faster and faster and the rubber was distorting. Small dents appearing all over the ball but then he started slipping, not enough power was delivered fast enough and small slip from the hand which was redirecting the currents made the chakra destabilise and blow a small hole in the side of the rubber ball. Naruto sighed and threw yet another broken ball back inside the bag that Jiraiya game him.

He heard the squashing sound of muddy earth and on pure instinct took out a kunai flipped backwards as the spot he was occupying was destroyed by a huge bandaged... sword? Naruto looked up to see who attacked him. The man was definitely tall and built like a tank, swinging that sword must have been incredibly easy to him. The most distinctive feature was the shark like skin and the razor sharp teeth. He wore a strange black cloak covered in blood red clouds. That predatory grin stuck on his face only added to Naruto's worries but on the outside he showed nothing.

"So this is the Kyuubi's Jinchūriki. You don't look like much kid but I was told to check out how strong you are. They didn't say anything about cuttings limbs off." The grin got even bigger as he hefted his bandaged sword onto his shoulder. "Get ready brat."

Naruto was already making handsigns and as the shark man was less than two meters away from him he slammed his hand into the ground. He flipped back again out of the dust cloud and sighed. It was close but it worked. He managed to summon a toad to block his opponents attack. This one was about as tall as the he was right now, had orange skin with black markings and was clad in armour which is what prevented that sword from going straight through him... or her. Naruto took a quick glance under the tree and noticed that Yuki was gone _'Smart fox'_

"I don't know your name but keep him occupied!" The toad nodded and added what Naruto thought was an affirmative croak before pushing on the sword with all its strength and delivering a kick with one of its legs to the shark man's torso. At the exact same moment Naruto shot a jet of water out of his mouth and as soon as it finished slammed his hand into the wet ground, freezing it instantly. The shark man grimaced as he slid backwards on the ice and steadied himself.

"This was an ice technique; I didn't know any of them survived. Hmh when I left Kiri there weren't many left. Ahh this just makes it more interesting." The grimace changed into a huge smirk instantly and the toad had to defend its summoner from the sword blows yet again. Naruto kept dodging whatever the toad couldn't keep up with and tried shooting a series of ice senbon at robed man. He was surprised to see that when they got blocked with the side of the sword they didn't just dissolve but instead got absorbed. The shark man laughed at his shocked expression.

"Ah now you see that this isn't a simple sword, Samehada here can absorb any chakra." Naruto's eyes widened, he knew he was outclassed but with a sword that can absorb Jutsu. He started thinking, the special sword, the shark like teeth, mentions of Kiri...

"You are one of the seven swordsmen, aren't you?" It was more of a statement than a question. The shark man seemed a bit taken aback for a second before smirking.

"You got that right brat. Kisame Hoshigaki, the strongest of the swordsmen!" This was getting worse and worse, he needed Jiraiya here right now. Hopefully he could survive until someone arrived. He drew some blood from his hand and swiped it across the scroll on his back. When the smoke cleared Kisame's eyes widened. "I never thought I would see that sword again. I wonder what happened to Zabuza..." Naruto's grip tightened around Kubikiribōchō's handle as he felt Kyuubi's chakra flow through him again. Turning his blood red eyes to Kisame he grinned, showing off the elongated canines.

"He's dead." Were Naruto's last words before he dashed towards Kisame, aiming for a spot the sword was designed for, straight for the neck.

Meanwhile Jiraiya, Tsunade and Shizune, who found the two just as they were coming out of the bar, were now following Yuki towards Naruto's location. They however were interrupted when a stranger in black robes with red clouds dropped in front of them. Jiraiya was about to shout something about moving out of the way when he noticed the spinning sharingan eyes and realised who was standing in front of him.

"Itachi Uchiha." The man didn't confirm or deny and Jiraiya's gaze hardened.

"Jiraiya and Tsunade of the sannin, I'm honoured to meet you in person." Itachi said, his gentle voice clashing with the steel gaze of his sharingan. Jiraiya ground his teeth, they had to help Naruto.

"Tsunade! Go help Naruto. I and Shizune will keep Itachi back. If something happened to Naruto then it's best if you arrived there first." Tsunade nodded and jumped into the treetops just as Jiraiya sent a barrage of hair needles at Itachi. He turned his head towards Shizune. "Never look him in the eyes." Shizune nodded and instantly they both had to dodge as black flames consumed the area they just stood on. Jiraiya looked at Itachi only to see a new form of the sharingan, this one resembling a curved pinwheel, the Mangekyō sharingan.

Tsunade jumped out of the tree and skidded to a stop on ice the seemed to cover at least half of the field. Naruto and a shark like man seemed to have locked themselves with their swords. Kisame quickly disengaged when the orange toad made a low round kick to give Naruto a chance at an overhead strike. When Kisame noticed Tsunade He scowled, as if he was disappointed. He suddenly picked up more speed than Naruto had seen anyone use before. Tsunade didn't make it in time as Kisame's sword slashed Naruto across the back and instead of cutting it shredded straight through the flak jacket, skin, flesh and muscles, leaving a stripe of bare bones underneath the remains of whatever was covering that area. The blood sprayed in an arc as Kisame turned Samehada and hefted it onto his shoulder.

"Just a parting gift." And with another one of his toothy smirks Kisame left. Naruto slowly dropped to his knees, Kubikiribōchō laid abandoned at his side, before he fell over face first into the blood stained water puddle slowly forming from the thawing ice. Tsunade stood still, her whole body trembling more and more as she took in the view in front of her. Naruto's blood slowly dripping down her face.

Tsunade was paralyzed, her hemophobia showing its ugly face for the first time in a long time. Maybe Naruto was right and she was a coward and now he would pay the price for her failure. No, she couldn't stand to have yet another death on her shoulders. Biting her lip she felt her legs move and she saw that she was getting closer to Naruto. She dropped onto her knees and with tears in her eyes she brought her hands up to the huge gash on Naruto's back. Through the blood and tears she noticed her hands were trembling, she forced them to be still and even though the rest of her wanted to run far away from here her hands still gained the green glow and the healing process started. First stop the blood loss, then start repairing the tissue and he would be fine... he had to be or she would never forgive herself.

She looked back at the wound and saw that the mystic palm was slowly healing the wound, accelerating the already incredibly fast regeneration thanks to the Uzumaki genes and the beast's residual chakra always present in Naruto's system. She allowed herself a small smile as now she knew that he would be fine.

It was at that moment that Jiraiya, Shizune and Yuki arrived at the field. Shizune gasped as she saw the blood covered Tsunade kneeling over Naruto's body and immediately she ran over to help her master. Both Jiraiya's and Shizune's clothes were slightly burned from the Uchiha's Jutsu but other than that they seemed fine. For now they had to get Naruto somewhere fairly sterile where he could rest and get better for at least a few days.

Naruto forced his eyes to open and groaned when he saw a white ceiling.

"I'm starting to see a pattern here." He muttered and closed his eyes again. From the amount of light in the room it was probably early morning, if he could get up then they could get moving again. He needed to train, to get stronger. _'He was only playing with me, testing my strength while not using a fraction of his...'_ His thoughts were cut as he heard shuffling to his right side and the heard someone call out his name. Again he forced his eyes open and saw the same girl he found with Tsunade the day they arrived.

"Naruto? How are you feeling?" She asked and he could see the concern in her eyes. That was new.

"Uhm, I feel fine, at least I think so." There was a small awkward pause before Naruto started talking again. "Sorry but I don't think I know you." He said with a small nervous chuckle before pushing himself up into a sitting position. The girl got slightly embarrassed and quickly answered his question.

"Shizune, I'm Tsunade's apprentice." Naruto nodded, the question was where were the two missing sannin.

"Nice to me you, you already know my name." Here the head scratching habit returned. "Do you know where did Jiraiya and Tsunade go?" Shizune opened her mouth to answer but at that moment the doors opened and speak of the devil the two sannin entered. Both heading straight up to the bed he was in. Jiraiya cracked a grin and ruffled his hair while Tsunade allowed herself a small smile.

"So when are we leaving here Jiraiya? And where is 'here'?... and how long passed since... since I lost?" Naruto fired off the questions, one after the other and Jiraiya sighed.

"Slow down kid, we are still in Tanzaku Gai; you were out just for the night. You should thank Tsunade and Shizune for that and we are leaving as soon as those two pack up and you are able to travel." Naruto eyes snapped to Tsunade when he heard the last part. His eyes narrowed slightly when she didn't meet his gaze.

"I thought you were not coming?" Tsunade had no idea what was going on but for some reason her body wanted to fidget under that brat's gaze, as if she was guilty and he was the judge. Quickly shaking the feeling off she started to answer his question.

"After we came back here with you I talked with Jiraiya and he managed to convince me to go back and help in the hospital. No promises on me being Hokage." Naruto snorted.

"If not you then we will search for another old hag to fill the position." The temperature in the room suddenly dropped and even Naruto with his affinity to ice wanted to shudder. Tsunade was about to rein down judgement upon the ungrateful brat but Jiraiya stopped her.

"Move out of the way Jiraiya or I will remove that which you treasure most!" Jiraiya cringed and one of his hands moved to protect his private parts on pure instinct.

"Could you wait until we get back to Konoha? Then you could do whatever you want to him but here there would probably be property damage..." Naruto's eyes grew bigger and bigger as Jiraiya listed reason after reason until Tsunade's murderous look changed into a smirk that promised pain. Naruto was briefly reminded of Anko before all three had to turn their heads as Shizune started giggling.

"All of you should have seen your faces, behaving like little children." She chuckled again before turning around and packing some of the left over things into a suitcase to be sealed later. With the tension now broken Jiraiya turned around to Naruto and Naruto could again see the concern in the man's eyes. He smiled just at the thought.

"So you think you can move Naruto?" Naruto moved his limbs before getting off the bed and standing up.

"I'm fine, I've had worse." Even though Naruto didn't notice the other three in the room cringed at the emotionless tone he used for the last part but no one said a thing. Jiraiya looked over at Shizune who already had everything packed.

"Well, let's get going then." Naruto threw his blue jacket on, strapped the scroll onto his back and followed the others out of the room. A minute later the maid, who entered the room to clean it up after the last occupants, nearly died of a heart attack as a white ball of fur the size of a large dog launched from under the covers and out through the open door.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Walking from Tanzaku Gai to Konoha in a straight line took only 2 days during which Naruto managed, to Jiraiya's and Tsunade's surprise, pull off the second stage of the 'secret' technique. That was when Jiraiya had shown him the technique, the rasengan, and demonstrated its power on an unsuspecting tree. Naruto was shocked that those annoying exercises would lead to something as powerful as that. Jiraiya told him to rest for now and start on the third step when he got to Konoha as they didn't have the necessary equipment anyway. Naruto for the remaining time of the journey decided to talk to Shizune who he discovered used poisons in battle. He had started reading into Haku's notes on poisons but never came up with any combat applications other than coating weapons. At the same time Shizune's pig, Tonton, apparently became friends with Yuki. Naruto snorted and laughed from time to time as the two conversed but refused to translate what Yuki was saying.

After entering Konoha Jiraiya, Tsunade and Shizune had to leave immediately to meet with the council leaving Naruto on his own. His stomach quickly informed him of his needs.

"Ah, ramen time!" Naruto exclaimed with a fist pump and Yuki quickly agreed.

**To Be Continued...**


	10. Stepp'd in so far

_Two weeks later_

Team seven except for Sasuke were lined up in front of the fifth Hokage, Tsunade Senju, who in the end decided to take the office a month ago. Kakashi was finishing his report on their mission in Snow, now Spring, country.

"...In the end Naruto finished Dotō with the rasengan after Yuki immobilised him by biting into the Achilles tendon. After that we stayed behind to make sure that the princess would be safe." Kakashi finished and took a look at his team. They all were tired and needed some rest. He was tired and needed rest; he also needed to go to the bookshop to buy a new issue of the icha-icha series. So much to do and so little time. Tsunade nodded, filled out some blanks in the mission file and threw the file onto the nearly toppling stack.

"Good job on finishing the mission. The extra money for an increase in rank will be added to your pay check. Now go home and take the three days off. Kakashi I need to talk to you alone." Naruto yawned and was the first out of the office followed by Sakura. Kakashi watched them leave before turning back to the Hokage who was watching the three genin just as intently. "So how are they doing?" Kakashi sighed and his shoulders sagged. Yet there seemed to be a small smile behind that mask.

"I really don't know Hokage-sama. I think they are better than before. Naruto actually talked with me and Sakura." Tsunade raised an eyebrow in slight disbelief but kakashi wasn't over. "Sakura approached me on our way back from Spring country and asked me if I could help her train."

"Really? That seems like a big turnaround from what I read in the third's journals." Kakashi nodded, he never expected things to get better but right now he was taking anything he could.

"I believe that it was the exams and the invasion that changed them." Tsunade nodded again.

"After so many years of peace they never expected anything like that to happen." They both stayed quiet before kakashi spoke again.

"And how is Sasuke? Is he still in the hospital after our meeting with Itachi?" Tsunade's face formed into a deep scowl and her hands reached to rub her temples.

"He is. It seems that whatever Itachi did affected him much worse than it did you but he is awake and should be out in a matter of days" Kakashi's eyes went down to the floor as he thought about that encounter. He couldn't protect one of his students, what sort of a sensei was he then?

"I expect a full written report tomorrow Kakashi. Now go get some rest. You look terrible."

"Ma, ma surely it isn't that bad." Tsunade's eyebrow twitched.

"Yes it is. Now leave before the smell gets into the fabrics!" Kakashi awkwardly eye smiled and left in hurry. Tsunade sighed before smiling lightly and reaching for the next paper to be signed on the stack. If life was even a little bit better for the brat then it was a success, he deserved to have it easy from time to time.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

It was the next morning that Naruto found himself walking to the hospital. Normally he would be trying to get away as far as he could. The place brought only bad memories but he wanted to visit his teammate and maybe he could catch Shizune to discuss some of the healing Jutsu he read about. He knew that Sasuke wouldn't have visited him in the hospital but he felt like he needed to visit him. He still felt that really thin connection from years ago, when they were just kids. He stopped when he realised that he was at the hospital already. Naruto shook his head to clear his thoughts, his face showed no emotion as he entered through the glass doors.

What was he doing with his life? All this training, all that work for nothing. He did everything that his brother had told him to. His only reason to live was to avenge his family; he fuelled that dream with the ever growing hate for his dear brother. Then why did he lose so easily, as if everything he did meant nothing. Sasuke felt humiliated, he felt weak and some part of him questioned if he was doing things the right way. The images of his blond teammate entered his thoughts. The dead-last of the class somehow managed to get so strong. What did he do different that made him so much stronger. Maybe it was the training he got from a sannin? Sasuke's thoughts were cut short as the object of his thoughts walked into the room.

Naruto looked around Sasuke's hospital room. The room itself was the same as his always were but this one was filled with get better cards, flowers, gifts from the civilians who saw his 'fight' and the council members who wanted to be in his good graces. His blue eyes found Sasuke's black but neither wanted to give in. Naruto was still standing at the now closed door while Sasuke was laying flat on the hospital bed.

"What do you want dobe?" Naruto could hear the anger and frustration and he understood. Kakashi told them what happened that day.

"I came to visit my teammate in the hospital, no matter how much of a teme he is." Sasuke grunted and moved his eyes to look at the ceiling. Naruto sighed and took that as a good enough sign and so he moved to sit down on the chair standing at the foot of the bed. "I fought with that other guy your brother was travelling with." At this Sasuke's eyes snapped back to Naruto and the question or more of a demand was already on his tongue but Naruto answered it before it even came. "No, I don't know why they came after me but all I wanted to say is that I felt like you do now. He played with me before nearly killing me." Sasuke was staring at the ceiling again but his face lost the scowl. Naruto stood up and started walking back to the door. "There are two things I could have done. Get depressed over a simple loss to an opponent that much better than me or accept defeat and get stronger so the next time I meet him I will be the one who wins." He turned around and left. Sasuke kept thinking about Naruto's words. _'When did he get so philosophical? But maybe he is right... Hn what is wrong with me... I just said that the dobe was right'_A dry chuckle escaped his mouth_'I need to be more powerful so that the next time will be the last time and I will be the last one standing.'_As Sasuke made his vow he didn't even feel the cursed seal spin lightly within the counterseal applied by Kakashi.

Naruto sighed deeply when he got outside of the room. Sasuke had to deal with this himself now. He started walking out of the hospital, his mind going to the Ichiraku ramen he was about to have when he bumped into someone.

"Naruto? When did you get back from your mission?"

"Sorry Shizune." Naruto said with his eyes on the floor and his hand on his head as he usually did when embarrassed. His eyes darted up to hers when she put her hand on his shoulder.

"Come on, I will treat you to lunch and you can tell me about your mission. " Naruto smiled and nodded, it seemed that being a student of a sannin gave them enough of a common ground to become friends pretty fast.

"Oh I know just the place! I swear you haven't eaten ramen until you have been to this place." Naruto grinned and left the hospital with Shizune.

"So you managed to finish the rasengan?" Naruto nodded as he slurped up another mouthful of noodles. He was only on his second bowl as he didn't want to get Shizune a huge bill. He still remembered Iruka's face when he took him out for lunch.

"Yeah, it came in really useful during the mission." He took a big sip from his bowl. "Hmh you know how I ended up training with pervy sage but how did you end up with the old hag?" Shizune nearly choked on her own noodles.

"Naruto you really should stop calling her that." Naruto chuckled under his nose and then smiled his foxy grin.

"It's the truth and she can't hear me here anyway." Shizune sighed before her whole expression turned into somewhat mournful look. Her eyes set on the bowl. Naruto's smile quickly dropped. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I mean it's not that important." Naruto started stammering at the end. He didn't want to upset someone who just became his friend. He didn't have much of those and tried to keep those that he did. Shizune smiled and shook her head.

"It's fine. Really. During the second war my uncle died, he and Tsunade were in love and she was the only one I had that resembled a family. When she left after his death she took me with her. I was only six when we left so I don't remember much of Konoha from back then." Naruto nodded while trying to think of a way to change the subject but he couldn't think of anything good enough. They both went silent and slowly finished their meals.

The night came fast and most people were either asleep or were out in the bars of Konoha. One person however was neither. Sasuke was in his hospital bed, still awake, still thinking. Maybe it was in him all along, maybe it was too much thinking or maybe it outside influence that made him come to this final decision. Tonight he would leave Konoha. He needed to get stronger to fulfil his goal, his dream, and if it meant selling his soul to Orochimaru then so be it. The sound ninja were supposed to be in Konoha right now finishing the other assignment Kabuto was talking about. Sasuke got up and disconnected all the monitoring devices. His clothes were sitting there ready to be put on. Now he only had to wait. A small part of him continued to ask if this was the right decision but it was quickly silenced, there was no turning back.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Meanwhile a group of four of Orochimaru's elite ninja, the sound four, were making their way to the hospital. Their mission was simple; eliminate a target and take the Uchiha alive.

Naruto nearly fell off his bed when he was prematurely woken up by a loud banging on his door. Grumbling about ungodly hours he picked himself off the bed and went to open the door. He was surprised to see Shikamaru standing on the other side with his chunnin vest on. His presence was surprising enough but the grave expression on his face made sure that Naruto was worried.

"Dress up Naruto, we have a mission?" Naruto raised an eyebrow, what sort of mission was he urgently needed for at this hour? Yet the look on Shikamaru's face made him run inside into his single room apartment and start putting on clothes.

"What is this mission and why is it so urgent?!" Naruto shouted while throwing on his own vest and fixing the scroll to his back.

"Two hours ago Sasuke left the village with four members of the sound village." Naruto paused and stared at Shikamaru, waiting to hear that it was a joke. When nothing else came he ran out, slammed the door and dashed for the Hokage tower with Shikamaru being just behind him.

"There are others coming, right?" Naruto spoke while looking at Shikamaru over his shoulder. Shikamaru made an extra jump and was now shoulder to shoulder with Naruto.

"Yes, I already talked to Kiba, Choji and Neji. You were the last. I couldn't find your apartment." Naruto nodded and sped up. When he saw the tower instead of going for the doors he went straight up the side of the tower and up to the open window in the Hokage's office. Tsunade wasn't even surprised when Naruto and Shikamaru jumped in through the window and took their places with the others, standing in a line and waiting for orders.

"You were brought in here as an emergency squad. Sasuke Uchiha was last seen at the north gate two hours and ten minutes ago. He was accompanied by four unidentified sound Shinobi. Normally we would have sent jonin or at least chunnin for this mission but our numbers after the invasion are low and spread out. You are the only ones available at the time." She looked at the team in front of her and saw only grim determination. They would need a lot more if they wanted to succeed in this mission but it was a good start. "Your primary objective is to capture and bring back Sasuke Uchiha alive, your secondary objective is to capture or kill the sound Nins." The five boys before her nodded. "Shikamaru will be your leader for this mission as he is highest in rank. Naruto will be second in command." She had expected a complaint but none came and she nodded in satisfaction. "Before you leave, remember that while Sasuke might be one of you we do not know if he went willingly or not. Just because you might not want to injure him doesn't mean he will hold the same respect for you. Now go." There was a loud chorus of 'Hai!' and the team of five left, moving across the rooftops and heading for the north exit. Somewhere along the way Yuki had joined the group.

In a matter of minutes they reached the forest and with the help of Yuki and Akamaru they were now following the smell trail left by Sasuke.

It wasn't long before they caught up with the sound four but Sasuke wasn't with them. Instead one of them was carrying a large basket like coffin. Neither of the groups moved, waiting for the other to start the fight until the basket changed hands and three of the sound left, leaving the big, orange haired boy behind to stall the leaf ninja.

"We need to go after the others; we can't waste time on each one of them separately." Shikamaru muttered under his nose but the others heard him clearly. Choji straightened up and stepped forward, his eyes set on his opponent. Shikamaru's eyes looked as if looking straight through Choji, probably thinking if this was the best way out of the situation, but in the end nodded and the remaining four leaf Nin jumped into the tree in pursuit of Sasuke.

One by one the team split down and when another sound ninja arrived to help the others the fights turned into one on one. The leaf was at a disadvantage. The sound all had cursed seals and all considered themselves at least chunnin, up to jonin level ninja.

Naruto was now facing the sound Nin sent as reinforcements. That boy, Kimimaro, had shoulder length white hair and the most noticeable feature were the two red dots on his forehead. The way he handled himself and the overly pale skin only confirmed Naruto's suspicion of his opponent's sickness. The fight was about to start, weapons were at the ready, when the coffin opened up. Slowly Sasuke emerged from the inside, already covered by the flame like markings of the cursed seal. As soon as stood up and stepped out of the coffin he jumped into the trees, intent on continuing his journey to Otogakure.

Naruto ground his teeth. He couldn't let Sasuke escape but he knew that the fight in front of him would not be a short one. It was right then that his own reinforcements arrived in the form of Rock Lee. Naruto let out a sign and smiled at Lee who grinned and gave him thumbs up.

"Yosh! I will take over from here Naruto!" Naruto nodded and jumped into the trees after Sasuke while Lee got into his Strong fist stance.

Naruto finally caught up to Sasuke at the border between the land of sound and land of fire. The valet of the end, a scar left by the fight between Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju. It would be a fitting place for the oncoming fight. A descendant of the Senju and host of the Kyuubi fighting one of the last Uchiha. They kept their eyes on the other as they stood on the heads of the statues of the founders. Sasuke looked like he wanted to say something but instead shook his head and dashed down into the valley. Naruto sighed; there was no going back now. He started making hand seals as he made his jump down into the valley to confront Sasuke.

Sasuke was about to launch himself at Naruto to finish this when he felt chakra moving around him. A thick mist rose from the water underneath him and moved all around him, filling the valley. His sharingan eyes caught a sight of Naruto before he too disappeared in the mist. Now all he could see was the dark blue colour of Naruto's chakra all around him.

He needed him alive, beaten but alive. The only poison he had on him was made to kill. Naruto knew that he had to move fast as Sasuke would find a way to get rid of the mist soon. Remembering everything he learned about silent killing he took out one of the kunai and made a dash for Sasuke, aiming for non lethal points that would help him immobilize Sasuke.

Sasuke dodged every strike as Naruto moved in and out of sight. Naruto hoped that he could do some damage but it seemed that he wasn't good enough with those techniques. He hadn't had much time to train after bringing back Tsunade. He jumped back as he heard the air shimmer and saw as multiple small fireballs smashed into the area all around him. He made a clone and started to circle Sasuke hoping to confuse him while he prepared the next Jutsu. The clone got destroyed by a flurry of fireballs but it gave Naruto just enough time to do the Jutsu properly now.

Meanwhile Sasuke was getting mad. He couldn't see more than a meter in front of him in this mist even with the sharingan and he had no Jutsu that could blow the mist away. He heard a quiet cracking sound and his eyes noticed multiple clumps of chakra forming a sphere of sorts. The mist started clearing a bit and Sasuke froze when he saw the technique Naruto just used. He was surrounded by ice mirrors, all reflecting the image of Naruto. Multiple barrages of senbon shot towards Sasuke who in turn fired a grand fireball, hoping that with the cursed seal it would melt the mirrors. It was only partially effective and Naruto was able to use the small distraction to cut into Sasuke's right arm. The same thing continued and Sasuke has had enough of this game. He has been tracing Naruto's movements and started preparing his own Jutsu. Just as Naruto moved between the mirrors again he felt the chakra build up and slowly recognised the chirping sound, Kakashi probably taught it to Sasuke during the one month preparation. He heard a yell of 'Chidori!' before the mirror he was occupying got blasted into pieces and he was thrown against the rocky side of the valley. Losing his concentration, Naruto's power over the mist waned and the mist started to slowly clear. He already felt water running down his cheek as it condensed back into a liquid.

Sasuke fired off another fireball as his sharingan spotted Naruto's chakra which started turning red before turning blindingly white. Sasuke had to dodge backwards as a clawed hand swiped in front of him. Naruto's red eyes met Sasuke's Sharingan and both launched a barrage of senbon and shuriken, not wanting to get into a taijutsu fight just yet. Sasuke had to go back on the defensive as Naruto's ice senbon started getting through and some were now stuck in his shoulder and chest. He made sure that the side of the valley was tall enough before running up the side and preparing another Chidori while Naruto started on his two handed rasengan. They both broke into a run and charged at each other meeting in the middle of the valley. The techniques clashed and threw both Naruto and Sasuke into the sides of the valley while, kicking up large amounts of water as the explosion shook the whole valley. When Naruto and Sasuke got out from the rubble they were different. Naruto was covered by a white chakra cloak resembling a one tailed fox while Sasuke turned into his stage two cursed seal form. His skin turned dark grey and his hair became dark blue while on his back situated were two claw shaped wings.

They both knew that this would be the end, a black Chidori and a dark blue rasengan were already formed and ready for another clash and if it came to that then only one of them would survive. As Sasuke was about to charge, Naruto dispelled his rasengan.

"Sasuke! Stop, it's over!" Sasuke was confused, how was it over? Did Naruto really think that he would go back to Konoha just like that?

"No! I'm not going back to the village, no matter what you do!" Naruto shook his head.

"I'm not fighting because I don't want to bring you back anymore." Sasuke was now shocked. Maybe he misheard him... but did Naruto really just say that he is letting him go? "Even if I brought you back you would leave again. I see it now. So go, leave! Fulfil your dreams, achieve your goal." By now Naruto's chakra cloak had dissipated and Sasuke's level one marking were slowly receding back. Sasuke kept watching Naruto intently, reading every move for any sign of deception or lies but found none. "But remember Sasuke, when you achieve your goals and I achieve mine we will meet again and that time only one of us will live..." Sasuke looked at Naruto and saw the serious expression on his face. That was a promise and Naruto always kept his promises.

Without even looking back Sasuke took his chance and ran up the side of the cliff while Naruto stood still as rain started to fall from the sky above. With a sigh he turned around and ran up the side of the cliff, back towards Konoha.

On his trek back he went past the empty battlefields where the rest of his team fought with the sound four and hopefully won. When he passed the first one where he left Lee to fight Kimimaro he saw the field of bone protrusions sticking out of the ground and Kimimaro himself transformed into a bone statue. The tons of sand intrigued him and the only possible explanation was the one tail's host, Gaara, but why would he be here. As he continued he stepped through a cut down forest and a maze of spider-like webs. The night started turning into dawn as he finally reached the gates of Konoha. His clothes burnt and torn but otherwise fine he decided to go to the Hokage tower. Tsunade and Shizune would drag him to the hospital anyway.

Apparently Tsunade and her assistant were busy in the hospital with the arrivals from the last mission. The receptionist didn't get to finish as Naruto ran out of the tower and headed straight for the hospital. Just as he was about to enter the doors opened and he ran straight into Kakashi who grabbed him by the shoulders to steady them both.

"Naruto! You are fine but how did you get back and how are you not injured. The recovery squad came back with all the others minutes ago and I was just about to leave..." Naruto was quite shocked as this was the first time he saw the man ramble like that.

"I'm fine... but Sasuke, Sasuke is gone." Kakashi's eye widened and his hands dropped to the sides. They walked back inside and sat at the empty seats in the waiting area. Naruto wanted to tell the truth of what happened but knew that it would do no good. The result for Sasuke would be the same but he might have ended up with punishment for ignoring orders. Finally deciding on telling the closest half truth he could he launched into his fight with Sasuke.

"...The order was to bring him in alive, I couldn't use the rasengan straight on him and he took my distraction to get away. By then he was in Sound territory and I couldn't follow him." Kakashi nodded.

"I should have been there helping you. Maybe then Sasuke would be here and the others wouldn't have been injured as much." Naruto nodded before asking the question that was burning to get out since he got there.

"How are the others? And what was Suna doing in our territory anyway?" Kakashi then told Naruto that the other's in his team were in critical conditions but would live; the only one with little injuries was Shikamaru who was being treated by his clan medics. The Suna siblings were sent as a peace envoy to negotiate a new treaty. Naruto was taking in all the information. Part of him felt guilty that he was the only one who by now was not really injured at all. The chakra cloak healed all the major injuries and now he only felt tired. Suddenly there was a scream for help and medics started moving towards one of the doors. Naruto's eyes widened as he recognised the door to be the one where the comatose third was being monitored. He watched as Tsunade ran across the corridor, pushing everyone away and made her way inside.

The feeling of dread crept up his back as he pushed himself off the seat. His feet pushing him along towards the door where the person he loved the most, the first person who ever showed him what having family like was like, was in. His mind was already conjuring worst scenarios but he wasn't prepared for what he saw when he peered through the small rectangular window into the room. Tsunade dropped to her knees as the monitoring devices stopped showing signs of life. The poison had spread too far and too fast and with the distraction of three patients in critical condition no one noticed anything.

He didn't know what to say or do. Naruto couldn't move as he continued to look through the glass, now at the face of the old man who now would never wake up.

The doors opened and Shizune found herself facing Naruto who seemed to be looking straight through her, trying to hold everything in. She grabbed him into a hug and he couldn't hold it in anymore and for the first time in a long time he cried. The loud sob made Tsunade turn her head around and the sight of a broken Naruto without that infectious smile on his face was too much. She couldn't hold it in too.

_Three days later_

All of Konoha was in mourning. Today would be the funeral of the third Hokage; the God of Shinobi who many thought would live forever. Naruto was putting his black t-shirt and getting ready to go to the funeral soon. He would not risk moving into the civilian crowd but he could not miss it, it would be the last thing he would do in Konoha. He didn't even bother closing his doors as everything he needed was in his scroll and made his way towards the place where the funeral would be held. When he arrived he took position under a tree, away from the crowd and willed himself not to cry again. He looked down when he felt Yuki nuzzle his hand and a small smile crept onto his face. He paid his respects and left the area, this was the perfect distraction.

When he reached near the south gate he stiffened when he felt Jiraiya appear behind him.

"I noticed you cleaned out your apartment." Jiraiya said calmly but Naruto didn't even move a muscle. "I wanted to ask you to come for a training trip with me for a couple years but I see you are going for a trip of your own." When Naruto was still not moving Jiraiya sighed and kept talking. "I won't stop you but is there anything you want to pass onto anyone here." This time Naruto turned around. His eyes were hollow, holding no emotion other the grief. Slowly his hands moved up to his head and to the back where he untied his headband. Taking one last look at it he handed it to Jiraiya.

"Give this back to Iruka, I don't deserve it anymore. Make sure that Tsunade and Kakashi don't blame themselves for everything that happened and make sure to help Shizune out with Tsunade. I'm sure it won't be pretty." Jiraiya smiled fondly and nodded before turning serious again.

"Naruto, I hope that you know what you are doing." Naruto didn't reply at first and turned his head to look at the Hokage monument.

"You aren't the only one Jiraiya." Naruto then turned around and started walking towards the village walls. Now in the background he heard Jiraiya say something about giving him a day of a head start. Grinning to himself he and Yuki waited for the patrol to pass, jumped over the walls and headed south.

_-'To this day I wonder how different things would have been if Jiraiya stopped me or if I didn't try to leave at all. Maybe things would have went better but I did make my choice that day and decided to stick with it no matter what... no matter the consequences. The first time I broke my nindo...'_

Scarred by the village who he was supposed to love. Beaten by life that never made it easy on him. Broken by the death of the only person he considered real family. Naruto Uzumaki, The Fox, left the village of Konohagakure.

**To Be Continued...**


	11. Long story cut short

The wind blew on the outside and the flames flickered under the draft that entered the small cave. Naruto tugged on his jacket and brought his hands closer to the small fire. Night outside of the village seemed much colder than he had anticipated. Yuki was curled up on the other side of the fire, looking outside as if keeping watch while still getting the heat from the fire.

Naruto nearly jumped when he heard Yuki's voice. Since leaving the leaf less than a week ago he had been stuck in his thoughts a lot. Thinking about everything and anything just to keep that growing fear from leaking out and taking over.

"Naruto, I-I didn't want to ask you before but... do you really think leaving was the best thing we could have done." Naruto sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He was thinking about that a lot and the answer that he came up with was never a good one. He knew that she missed their friends just as much as he did. The fact that they might never see them again or if they do it might be on opposite sides was still sinking in.

"I-I honestly don't know Yuki." The golden eyes turned onto him and the weight lifted off his shoulders even if a little bit. Those eyes showed that no matter what the answer would be that he she would never leave; he would never be alone in this. "But it doesn't matter. I made the choice and now I will deal with the consequences." He continued staring at the fire until Yuki spoke again.

"We. We are a team remember?" At this he couldn't stop the smile from slipping onto his face. They would worry about things when they had to but for now it was time to take out the fire and go to sleep. They were near the border and getting out of the country without alerting any patrols and without getting caught by any teams sent after him was a priority.

"Yeah, I remember." The sizzling noise of the dying fire echoed inside the cave as Naruto drenched it with a small water Jutsu. The light died out completely and soon Naruto felt himself fall asleep inside one of the sleeping bags he sealed inside his scroll.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Both Yuki and Naruto couldn't believe what they were seeing.

"The Great Naruto Bridge?" Yuki asked no one in particular with amusement clear in her voice. Naruto snapped his mouth shut and mock glared at his foxy friend who by now was walking down the bridge, the fluffy tail swishing behind her.

"Hey! Come back here! What was with that tone? I think I deserve _some_ recognition!" He shouted and tried to catch Yuki as she ran away laughing... or making strange yipping sounds depending on who was listening.

The place looked exactly the same as he had left it. Other than being overgrown by plants it felt as if it happened yesterday. The rock was still there and the writing looked just as fresh as when he had done it.

Getting here without entering and alerting the small town was easy, with them having no real defences against ninja. He knew he would be probably welcomed but he couldn't go there. A couple of people knew of what happened here and knew of the significance this place held for him. The leaf ninja will be here or already are, just waiting for him to appear.

Settling himself under a tree opposite the grave Naruto took the moment of peace to think of his next move. First was to lose anyone who could be following him and the best way would be to travel by water and then disappearing completely for a while. Money would not be a problem for a long while. He wanted to see the world, a world from an unbiased view that the village seemed to present. Visiting the villages seemed like a good start. Training during his travels would be more than enough and he had enough to work on. The snow techniques he had seen used by the ninja in, now called, spring country had piqued his interest. For now that was enough, he would face the problems as they came.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

The land of tea was not what Naruto had expected it to be. His mind had conjured long rolling plains stretching to the horizon, all filled with the tea plants but he was in a way disappointed to find only a large number of tea houses scattered in the towns and sometimes along the roads while the rest of the country looked similar to fire or wave country.

Tea was never Naruto's thing but the lady behind the counter in one of the tea houses had convinced him to try one of her special blends. Naruto had made another resolution that day _'Never trust old ladies; no matter how much they smile... scrap that! Especially if they smile.'_Yuki had agreed with him once she had tasted the tea.

Slowly he was making his way towards the south end of the peninsula that was the land of tea to reach one of the port towns. Then take a boat to wind country or river country and go from there. Right now Naruto was walking down a road leading towards Degarashi Port and hoping that there was a ramen stand inside the town when suddenly he felt a strong pull, as if he was being boxed into a small space and then pulled out. When the feeling stopped he found himself on his back on a stone paved road. Naruto could already feel a headache setting in but his mind pushed everything away when he heard a voice he didn't expect to hear so soon.

"Get up kid, we have to talk." Jiraiya hadn't even finished his sentence when Naruto sprang up from the ground, kunai in hand and ready to fight whatever threat he could be facing. This brought a grin to his face. _'Maybe this is good for him after all.'_Was the first thought in Jiraiya's head but there were more important things to talk about, also he didn't like how that angry fox was looking at him while barring that sharp set of teeth.

"Where am I Jiraiya? And what do you want?" Naruto was clearly panicking, his eyes darting for a possible exit route but the place was entirely foreign to him. He had to say that the place was breath taking with the mountains, lakes, rivers and huge expanses of grass but he still had no idea where he was.

Jiraiya held up his hands in mock defence. "I just wanted to talk." Seeing the questioning look on Naruto face he sighed. "And this is the land of toads" He then mentioned around him with his hands "Mount Myōboku!" Naruto seemed to take in the information but his stance didn't change even one bit. "Don't worry; it's a neutral ground as the toads wouldn't let their summoners fight on their home turf." Only then did Naruto's hands dropped to his sides and soon after Yuki backed down.

Jiraiya took this as a good sign and motioned for Naruto to follow. "We've got a lot to talk about."

Naruto couldn't believe what he was hearing, it all sounded surreal yet after all the things he had seen and heard a part of him expected something like that to happen. If the villages captured and used the tailed beasts then who was to say that a criminal organisation that was powerful enough couldn't do so as well. The fact that this Akatsuki was composed of S-rank missing Nins was bad enough but he had met two of their current members and one who had left the group. Kisame and Itachi would be able to hold their own against someone like Jiraiya and Orochimaru was able to nearly mortally wound the third Hokage. Now they were after him.

"Is there anything else?" Naruto said with a sigh as he rubbed the side of his head. The headache crashing in full force.

"There is a good side to all of this." Jiraiya had to say that Naruto got the killing glare down pretty good. "With you out of the village no one knows where you are, as long as you stay down they will have a harder time finding you, there is also the fact that they won't be starting their operation for at least another two or three years, they are still lacking funds. You also hold the nine-tails and so will be searched for the last." Jiraiya finished with a grin.

"And how the hell do you know all of this?" Naruto couldn't keep the question back anymore. He was always curious how Jiraiya tended to know about everything that needed to be known about.

"You would have to thank my spy network which I will be introducing to you over the next two years." Naruto opened and closed his mouth a few times before he managed to construct what he wanted to say.

"Won't you have to bring me to Konoha if we leave this place?"

Jiraiya smirk widened. "Who said anything about leaving? Everything you need to know I will tell you here, including your extra training." Naruto felt the corners of his mouth move into a smile. No matter what he told anyone he really did miss the white haired sage.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Sun, sand, excruciatingly hot air and more sand. That is what wind country looked like. The white cloak helped to reflect the sunrays but he still had to use his ice chakra to cool himself. His eyes wandered to Yuki and he wondered how the hell she was dealing with this heat under all that fur but she seemed pretty much fine. Sunagakure had managed to make a new treaty with Konoha which meant that he was in Suna's bingo books. He had to stick to the smaller towns and try to not stand out. Dumping the blue flak jacket that he grown used to wearing so much was a necessary sacrifice, It was also torn and patched up multiple times. No point trying to fix something which looked like it would break from a single strike. He sighed before taking a swing from his water canteen and continued to traverse over the next sand dune, covering his eyes as the wind blew sand his way again. _'Wind country, eh?'_

_**-o-o-o-o-o-**_

Jiraiya's training was unforgiving ever since the truth about Akatsuki came out. Naruto had to be ready to face ninja on the level of Orochimaru and Itachi in just two to three years. A task that some would have called impossible yet, as Jiraiya looked on Naruto's progress, seemed entirely possible. It was now more than ever that Jiraiya couldn't believe how no one had ever noticed this gem among all the others. A village which appreciated powerful ninja refused to see one that could shadow all those before him and now he was out of their grasp.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

The land of grass was a lie. Just like there was no tea in the land of tea, there was no grass in the land of grass. The whole time that Naruto spent travelling through there he had been travelling through tall and very densely populated forests, some even filled with bigger than normal mushrooms and bamboo. The giant ravines didn't help his travels at all but at least there was always a lot of shelter from the rain. His next stop was supposed to be Earth country but Jiraiya had been strongly against it for a reason unknown to him.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto tried to calm his breathing, he never expected Konoha to find him this far from the village and that long after he left. One thing bothered him though. _'Those masks, they weren't normal anbu but then who?'_Focusing again he made sure that the transparency Jutsu was still active. _'One more thing to ask Jiraiya when we meet again...'_

"I think I know who that 'anbu' that you met was. I only hope that I'm wrong..." Jiraiya looked even worse than after their usual training sessions, lack of sleep clear on his face.

"That bad huh? Things are never easy for us..." Jiraiya nodded grimly and the two sat in silence on one of the fields in the land of the toads. "So how are things back in Konoha?" Naruto heard Jiraiya take in a long breath, things probably weren't as good as they would want them to be.

"It's complicated. They are still angry but most of the people you knew seemed to understand why you left, that doesn't mean that Tsunade and Shizune won't punch your face in if they ever get a hold of you." Naruto felt himself smile. It felt as if he was a missing-nin much longer than it was in reality and he really missed those few people that were close to him in Konoha. The saying that we don't realize how much something means to us until it's gone was quite true. "Things have calmed down after all this time, people nearly forgotten about it all."

Jiraiya had started sending him on small missions for the spy network, to gain experience, earn some cash and gain more trust with the people running the network. Trust, it was a strange word coming out of the mouth of a missing-nin. After all this time really trust was hard to come by. It seemed that Jiraiya was not involved with those missions as his next one was an assassination with a delivery ending in Iwa. Jiraiya had told him not to enter Earth country but a mission was a mission, what could be the worst that could happen?

Entering the drop-off point for missions done by free lancing ninjas in Iwa Naruto went straight for Earth country's version of the Bingo book. Apparently he wasn't placed in the public version of the fire country's book and the one available to anbu only had him marked as to be brought alive but it seemed that a couple of assassinations and seek and destroy missions where he used the rasengan and his ice Jutsu had earned him a place in some other bingo books. The 'Fox' was still a low class missing Nin, probably not worth going for but reading the description of him and his abilities still brought a smile to his face as sometimes it was totally wrong.

He must have been still tired after running through two countries to deliver the box and complete the mission made him make a small mistake that in the future would explain so much. The hood on his cloak was down and while no one knew that he was the 'Fox' or that his name was Uzumaki Naruto, the Iwa war veteran sitting behind the counter knew the wild blonde hair and piercing blue eyes as they haunted his dreams every night, as his comrades fell around him becoming nothing more than bloody fertiliser. Naruto knew he had to run when the Iwa-nin jumped over the counter and made to attack him with a kunai. By the time he had ran out of the town and gained some distance he had about ten mad, revenge seeking ninja on his tail. The biggest question was why did they even mistook him for the fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze.

Jiraiya had hoped that this would have never happened. Naruto already had a lot of burdens on his soul and this would not have helped him at all but the fact that he had gained this knowledge not from him but from an encounter with Iwa made it that much worse. Their already strained 'friendship' could be broken by his next words.

"So Jiraiya? Anything you want to tell me?" Naruto shouted, his voice gaining a slight demonic edge to it as he turned his blood red eyes to Jiraiya, the glare hitting full force. The killing intent and chakra soaking the air around them could have brought many chunnin, possibly even some jonin, down. "At first it didn't made sense but the more I thought about the more it fits! Oh how fitting that the son of the Hokage became the pariah of the village!" Jiraiya flinched every time Naruto stressed out the words, he could not look Naruto in the eyes.

"It won't matter what I tell you since by now you pretty much know all there is to know."

"And my mother? Who was she?"

"Her name was Kushina Uzumaki, the previous host of the nine tailed fox." Jiraiya's eyes turned to Naruto as he heard a roar that shook the ground slightly. Some of the toads started to move out of the area, trying not to get caught in the middle of whatever was about to happen. Meanwhile Naruto's cloak had sprouted a second tail and was condensing even more, trying to force a third one.

"So my father, a man who slaughtered thousands and then left his own child at the mercy of a village full of mindless fools! And my mother, yet another host who never cared about the Bijuu. Only stole what was not hers. Oh I've seen the memories and I started to wonder who was really the beast..." Jiraiya couldn't believe what he was hearing. Out of all the things he had never expected this. The small redeeming factor was that it wasn't all Naruto. The foxes influence could be seen in the cloak as the normally pristine white had swirls of blood red within it. Naruto now on all fours was stalking back and forwards, his chakra claws digging into and burning the grass. Jiraiya did the only thing he could do at the moment and used one of the Bijuu suppression seals he had designed. Hopefully Naruto would think differently with a clear head when he woke up. Jiraiya sighed and shook his head as he carried the unconscious body of his student to one of the toad huts.

That event changed things for a little while. Naruto refused to speak to Jiraiya for over two months but before he had left, the toad sage forced him to take two books just in case they wouldn't meet in a longer period of time. The first one was a simple one, detailing the art of Fūinjutsu for beginners _'At least it will occupy me on those quiet evenings in the forest...'_Jiraiya had said something about it being in his blood. The second one was different, something that one would not expect to have been the first book of the author of the Icha Icha series.

"Hmh... 'The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi'. What a ridiculous name. Only someone like Jiraiya could come up with something like that." Naruto shook his head but started reading anyway. He had to pass time between assignments somehow.

They both fidgeted on their spots, trying not to meet the eyes of the other. One could say it was quite comical to see two such powerful ninja behave like small kids who didn't want to apologise even though they knew it was them but maybe that is what made them so strong, their little quirks and oddities that set them apart from the others.

"Naruto..." Jiraiya couldn't continue as his student launched into his own explanations before he could continue.

"No, I-it was my fault. The way I reacted was nothing like it should have been. I'm sure you had your reasons for not telling me and the way I reacted shows that maybe I wasn't ready... I'm sorry."

"I should have told you long ago myself, maybe then we could have avoided all this mess so Naruto... I'm sorry as well." Finally their eyes met and both student and master smiled at each other. "But I wanted to ask... where did those things you said come from?" At this Naruto's brows furrowed and he turned his gaze to watch as the toads worked near the waterfalls nearby. He let out a long sigh before he started speaking but the look on his face remained.

"I-I'm not really sure... It felt as if I was right at the time but at the same time it also felt as if those weren't my own thoughts." As the last words left Naruto's mouth Jiraiya grew alarmed. There was only one thing in Naruto that could do this and the idea of the seal weakening was frightening in a way.

"Naruto, when was the last time that happened and did it happen a lot before?!" Jiraiya by now nearly had Naruto by the shoulders.

"That was the first time when I could really feel it so I don't know if it happened before." Naruto said quickly and Jiraiya calmed down. "But there are the dreams as well." Jiraiya had only limited knowledge of Bijuu and hosts in general but never had he heard of dreams that could relate to this case. Naruto saw the quizzical look in his eyes and kept going. "Most of the times it's a haze, some noises and a shadows but sometimes they are really vivid and the fox is always in them but he never seems to notice me or do anything to me. Sometimes they look like his memories... That is how I knew of how the pre... Kushina kept the Kyuubi at bay..." Jiraiya nodded but didn't pursue the subject further. This was something that needed to be done with a calm head so instead he asked the one question that he forgot to ask the last time.

"So, do you know where you are moving next?" Naruto smirked and nodded.

"The Village hidden in the mist followed straight up by the Whirlpool Islands."

**To Be Continued...**


	12. Promises, promises

"I get it with the village being hidden in the mist and everything but this is just too much..." Mumbled a frustrated blonde as he continued trudging through the milky mist. Walking on for hours by now and not seeing more than a meter or two in front of you could get to anyone. Naruto only knew he was going the right way thanks to the occasional signs and Yuki's orientating skills. The truth was that if he was alone he would have probably gotten lost by now. One would think that all the training with the mist Jutsu would have helped in traversing this mist but Naruto had quickly found that this mist was much different than his own.

"So..." Yuki's lightly mocking voice echoed in the air around them and Naruto's shoulders sagged in what seemed like defeat. Then the fire returned. Naruto growled in frustration again and started moving forward again. Yuki was about to say something about stopping for today but instead heard a tired shout of 'Finally!' from Naruto's direction. Running over she found herself looking over at a Cliffside overlooking what looked like the entrance of the village and the only thing between them and the village now was about an hour long path, twirling down and around the rocks. One thing both Naruto and Yuki had to agree on was that this place was one of the best looking places they have visited over the last two years.

The guards who took care of monitoring the chakra signatures found within the mist surrounding the village didn't knew what to do with the situation at hand. In the end they decided to take it to the Mizukage, just in case, and that is why Mei found herself with a short report about two chakra signatures who entered the area around the village and were now walking straight down the main path towards the village. There were no envoy's from any villages with an appointment for anytime within the month and anything important would have been sent by messenger birds. Taking a look at all the work to be done Mei smiled, happy to take a break and shunshined to the west gate of the village trying her best to hide her own curiosity and to keep on the responsible leader face in front of her subordinates.

From being in some other villages, even if they weren't the major ones in the elemental nations, Naruto had expected to be searched thoroughly and to be questioned about his motives and what not. What he did not expect was a small unit of what seemed like jonin ninja. In the very front of the group stood the Mizukage, looking the same as he remembered her from the chunnin exams in Konoha, but why would she be here?

Mei saw the stranger appear from the mist, he was wrapped in a white cloak and the top of the hood covered his face. The whole thing was wrecked after what seemed years of travel and battle. Mei felt as if she was supposed to know who he was and wrecked her brain to match the glimpses of the face to a person. It all clicked when she saw the bigger-than-should-be-possible white fox. There was only one person she knew off that had that special kind of companion but the image of the brat did not match with the person in front of her. He did grow in height and in muscle over the two years but what changed the most was how he handled himself. Back then he was still a child, matured more than others but still a child. Now though he was closed in, the fighting spirit could still be seen in his eyes yet his posture was guarded, an animal ready to escape should it feel threatened.

He was close enough to the Mizukage for the jonin guards to step forward with their weapons raised, ready to strike should the need arise. Everyone was surprised when Naruto moved forward ignoring the guards and dropped on his knee in front of the Kage, his head bowed low. Naruto thought that he would never bow in front of anyone, people needed to earn his respect but he also remembered what Jiraiya had told him before one of the visits to the spy network _'I know you don't pay respect to anyone until you think they deserve it but for kami's sake remember that you might have to bow down one day. Flattery will get you everywhere..."_He then went on into his own world of 'what flattery got me'.

"State your name and your reason for this... visit." The voice was straight yet seemed to carry the similar force that Naruto remembered in the third's voice. He raised his head so he could speak up.

"Uzumaki Naruto, I wish to call on a... proposal made to me a bit more than two years ago, Mizukage-sama." Naruto really had to focus to not cringe as the last part left his mouth. Yuki snickered and he shot her a glare which quickly shut her up. Mei pondered for a bit before smirking.

"You can get up now; we will continue this in my office." She then motioned with her hand and a man in a green robe and an eye patch moved forward. "Ao, please get better sensors at the guard post. Their reports didn't even mention the chakra pool sizes and they weren't sure if their numbers were correct." The sweet smile made Naruto shiver but the older man seemed to be unaffected and only bowed before he and the other ninja disappeared from the spots they just occupied. Naruto knew that they weren't really gone, not all of them at least. Mei looked back at him, the smile never leaving her face. "Come now, you can see some of the village while we walk back to my office."

Naruto nodded and had to jog a bit to catch up to Mei who had already started moving, Yuki moving in line with him trying not to get lost in a place new to her. The place definitely looked different than most of the other places he had seen. The colours used consisted mainly of darker and blander colours to aid the mist in hiding the village. The seclusion from the mainland could be clearly seen in the building designs as the village seemed to be made of tower like buildings, connected with bridges and waterways at many points, some of them even had large gardens as part of their roofs. One could get lost here pretty quickly without knowledge of the village.

Soon the Hokage 'tower' came into view. Konoha and suna had tall, towering... towers. This one was much larger but also shorter than the others. It didn't seem that impressive height wise when compared to some of the other buildings but the signs that it was the centre could be seen as all roads ultimately seemed to lead to this place. He seemed to grab a lot of attention as he followed the Mizukage to her office. Naruto though wasn't sure if it was his wild blonde hair clashing with his white attire or if it was his unusual choice of a companion. In the end it didn't matter and even brought a small smile to his face as the people were only curious. A similar trend continued inside the building as he was led up long winding staircase furnished with a deep blue carpet.

Naruto closed the doors to the office and stood in front of the now seated Mizukage. Mei's face showed nothing and her eyes bored through Naruto's as if searching for something. "So you said something about a proposal?" Naruto sighed and scratched the back of his head; this was the moment of truth.

"I wanted to visit the whirlpool islands and the last time we met you said you could help me with that... Mizukage-sama." The last part was added more as an afterthought. The room went silent for a few seconds and Naruto was getting uncomfortable.

"Ok." Naruto was about to thank her for her time until his brain caught up with what she said.

"Eh?!" Both Mei and Yuki snickered and his confused expression.

"I said Ok. I said I would help you get there two years ago and I didn't change my mind. Also drop the 'Mizukage-sama' we both know that it's not you saying that." She smiled at Naruto again when he didn't reply and looked lost for words. She turned her chair to the side and from one of the drawers took out what looked like a map. Quickly she wrote a short letter and placed the map and the letter inside a folder like the ones he was used to see the mission briefs in back in Konoha. Mei placed the brown folder on her desk and pushed it towards him but Naruto didn't move. He seemed suspicious and unsure, after all nothing came for free.

"What do you want in return?" This time it was him that showed no emotion, the 'perfect ninja' face. Mei only smirked in return; this might be the chance to get some answers. She placed a finger on her lips and swung back, exaggerating her thinking pose as if she didn't knew what she wanted already.

"Hmh, how about you tell me how an Uzumaki can use ice release?" Naruto's breath froze. How could he forget that Haku's clan came from Kiri? Of course the Mizukage would want to know how he could use Hyōton especially after seeing it during the chunnin exams. _'If I tell her it might be the last thing I do but if I don't agree then I might not even get to leave this office... this sucks!'_ For a moment he thought that he heard a chuckle in the back of his head but it disappeared as quickly as it came.

"And what if I don't agree? Ninja need to keep some things secret after all." He said carefully, making sure to not walk into a trap. Her smile didn't falter as she turned to another drawer and took out a book that Naruto was very familiar with. She flicked through the pages until she found the exact one she was looking for.

"You know there is apparently a new freelancing ninja on the rise within the bingo book. No one is sure who he is or what village he came from. Of course there are some rumours who he is and some countries already have a kill or capture bounty on him. Hmh, I suppose you didn't hear of this 'Fox' have you?" Her face held the most innocent smile yet the eyes sparked with mischief, she was enjoying this especially since she knew that she won. Naruto refused to show weakness, especially now, but even he knew when he lost.

Slowly he shook his head. "No, I'm sorry but I do not know about him." He looked towards the folder in his hands. "I will tell you everything when I come back from the whirlpool islands."

"How do I know you will come back?" Her voice wasn't accusing, more like curious. Naruto's reply came immediately.

"It's a promise. Many things changed but I never break my promises." He was gone as soon as he finished. The snow white fox gone with him. Mei only shook her head, If only some of her own ninja were as strong as he was. Even if he tried as hard as he did he still couldn't mask his chakra fully. Mei had a feeling that things would get interesting pretty soon.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto and Yuki were getting close to the small port that was marked on the map after moving for nearly the whole time since they left Kirigakure. Naruto was very eager to get to the old whirlpool country as fast as he could and when Naruto was excited about something then there wasn't much that could stop him.

"Naruto could you tell me we needed to visit that Mei to just travel to this island?" Yuki managed through her tired breaths.

Naruto smirked, looking slightly victorious. "If you haven't slept through all our meetings with Jiraiya then you would have known why." He chuckled as he dodged her claws. "After the village was destroyed the whole place went under lockdown, the defences around the island turned on. Kiri, being the closest one to whirlpool country, took the advantage of the chaos thanks to the war and took over the area. So now the place is protected by both the islands defences and Kiri's mist. I got a letter from the Mizukage to a man in this small town who is one of the few people who knows how to get the island without getting the ship sucked in the whirlpools or crashed on the rocks. Now come on, the faster we get there the faster you can go to sleep." Naruto chuckled again as Yuki sped up and quickly dashed ahead of him.

The town, more of a collection of wooden fishing houses, was quite easy to find and the man who was supposed to provide the transport was even found even faster as it seemed he provided similar services for the hidden mist village before. He didn't say a word and instead just read the letter and motioned for them to get on the boat and Naruto was just fine with that.

It was a small fishing boat that would fit at most three people. From the outside it looked like it should have been decommissioned from use... about ten years ago but for a Shinobi it didn't matter as even if it broke down they could walk on water. A few hours passed and Naruto woke up to a familiar sight. Silence, a boat and mist that did not let anything be seen. Only a half built bridge was missing. It was strange how a totally new chapter of his life started thanks to that mission and now he had a feeling that something big was coming up.

Naruto woke up when he felt something wet on his cheek and found that it was Yuki nudging him with her nose. He stood up and saw why she woke him up. From the mist the outlines of the shore and the tree canopies have started to appear. Soon it cleared enough to see more and more until the boat stopped some distance away from a ruined dock. The man looked back at Naruto and spoke for the first time.

"You have ten hours; if you are not here then I'm leaving without you." His voice was gruff and deep, followed by a cough. The cliché sailor who had too much alcohol and smoked too much. He waited until Naruto nodded and left the wheel to anchor the boat. Meanwhile Naruto and Yuki had already jumped off and were running to the shore.

The first building that Naruto stepped into was the small dock that he saw through the mist before. Everything was over grown with plants. Windows inside the small building were shattered, the roof burned down _'Probably by a fire Jutsu...'_

"This way Naruto!" Yuki shouted from the outside as she pointed towards the middle of the island with her head. Jiraiya had described the general layout, of the main island that housed the village, to them and with Yuki being a living, portable compass they shouldn't have much problems with finding the village. They both started to run as they had limited time to explore this place for now.

Soon enough they found the river that was supposed to run through the middle of the village and after following it for a couple of minutes at ninja speeds they started to reach the outskirts of the village. The walls were nonexistent anymore. Whatever wasn't destroyed during the actual attack got weathered by time, leaving nothing but rubble behind. Houses collapsed and burned down littered the view. From time to time he noticed the Uzumaki clan markings on some walls and signs. A spiral that he had seen being worn by Konoha Shinobi. It seemed that they treated the now gone Uzumaki clan with respect yet apparently they didn't include him in that group.

The centre of the village was in a way similar to Konoha. The buildings were mostly rectangular blocks, probably reaching high into the sky. Now they were nothing more than piles of concrete. Trees had managed to grow through some of the roads while some walls were still stained with the now black blood.

"What are we looking for Naruto?" Yuki asked. Naruto stopped walking and ran his hand across one of the Uzumaki marked pillars that were scattered through the village. He smiled but it was a sad smile.

"I don't know Yuki, I'm sure most things were pillaged already so this trip was more for me than with an actual goal in mind." A few seconds passed in silence. "Although we could try the main building. Go through the files; gather any books and scrolls we can find." He fell silent, lost in thoughts. Yuki decided to do something and head butted him from the back which made him stumble forwards. He turned around ready to ask what the hell she did it until he found her jumping around, waiting for him to chase her. It was those times that he was thankful that he didn't have to do all of this alone.

Yuki stopped in front of the biggest building that seemed to be the centre of the village and probably housed the office of the leader of the clan and the village. It was right then that she got tackled, thankfully into the grass, by Naruto.

"Got you!" He started laughing until he heard a growl; he quickly stood up and brushed off the grass and dirt off his clothes. The tower was again similar to that of Konoha, at least on the outside. Pieces of the walls were missing but if it didn't collapse until now then walking inside for an hour or so shouldn't make that much difference. Naruto carefully pushed the door but instead of swinging open the frame broke and the door fell inside with a large 'thud'. Naruto flinched and looked around to make sure nothing would fall on his head while Yuki just stormed on. Whatever wasn't burned, razed or crushed by rubble showed off the Uzushiogakure colours. It seemed that they liked reds, blues and the surrounding colours. The spirals were all red just as most of the carpets while the walls were white or deep blue.

Slowly they made their way to the highest located office. After going in through the thick, dark wooden doors they entered the large office. Strangely it seemed to be mostly intact in contrast with the rest of the building. It looked as if it was frozen in time, the papers thrown around the floor, pen left down on the desk mid sentence. Naruto could just imagine as the clan leader dropped everything and left to help defend the village when the alarms went off.

"If the setup is the same as in other villages then Shinobi files should be located somewhere in this room." Naruto murmured under his nose while looking around the room. Other than the desk, there was only one shelf filled with books and a small separated area with seats and a conference table. Deciding to start with the desk he walked around it and sat in the chair. He looked over and saw Yuki walking by the walls and sniffing around, trying to find hidden doors or compartments.

Top of the desk seemed to be made out of white marble and it was then that Naruto noticed the semi circle made out of low relief carvings. Looking closer he saw that they were actually kanji markings for different items like missions and Shinobi.

"Of course... they were fūinjutsu masters and most Shinobi don't even know how the paper bombs work." He shook his head and placed his finger on the carved kanji for Shinobi and channelled chakra into it. He withdrew his hand sharply when he felt something prick his finger. Nothing happened for a second before the sign turned deep black and the semi circle that was surrounded by the carvings turned into a large and very complicated looking seal. In a way it looked similar to the one placed on his stomach, the swirls and the ink stroke types seemed to be of a similar style. In the very centre of the circle shaped seal was an empty space that would be the focus of the seal when filled. While nowhere near to be even calling himself a novice in fūinjutsu he knew the basic workings of the simple seals and most seals tended to work in a similar way.

There was the actual seal that was drawn in special inks or chakra filled blood. Then there was the input, the seal processed the input and then did whatever it was designed to do. Here the seal, hopefully, housed all the files about the village's Shinobi, now the search would need to be narrowed down...

"This couldn't be this easy..." Naruto shook his head and reached for the brush and ink in one of his own sealing scrolls. "Only one way to find out" he took a deep breath before leaning forward and writing 'Kushina Uzumaki' in the middle of the circle. The large spiral spun multiple times and the outside rings turned, setting into different combinations before Naruto heard the very familiar sound and under his left hand, which then was resting on the desk, felt a medium sized stack of papers. The smoke disappeared nearly immediately and Naruto threw the first file open. He grinned like an idiot when he saw a picture of a redhead who was smiling very much like himself at the moment and his mother's name typed out beside the picture.

Yuki ran back to find Naruto to find him still sitting at the desk with his face hidden behind an open file. The desk itself was covered by stacks of folders and papers. She walked around and sat beside the chair, waiting for Naruto. After five minutes of nothing she got annoyed.

"Naruto!" He closed the file and placed it back on top of the nearest stack.

"So did you find anything else?" Yuki shook her head and looked to the floor, disappointed that she couldn't really help out. Naruto patted her on the head to try to cheer her up, even if a little. "Don't worry. I found more about my mother and the fox's previous hosts than I could imagine. There is also a folder about the clan itself so it might help out with some of my other research." He then carefully sealed all the papers into a single scroll and attached it to his trousers with the other small scrolls. Standing up he looked out the window just as the sun was starting to set down. They were going to be just on time to leave.

"Are we ever going to come back here?" Yuki asked, it was nice here. The place felt... warm in a way that was different to the hot sands of suna or the sunny weather of Konoha.

"No... maybe... I-I don't think so... I knew that there was nothing left here. I found more than I hoped for but this is it. This place is dead and it will stay that way unless something big happens. The clan is no more, no one to help rebuild, no one... no one to share this place with..." He felt Yuki lean her head against his hand and smiled a bit. "Well enough with the sad thoughts!" He looked at the sun and then at his watch. "We need to get going fast unless we want to get stranded here. I have a feeling that the man wasn't joking when he said that he would leave without us."

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

When the duo arrived back in Kiri the next day an escort was already waiting for them at the gate and they were taken straight to the Mizukage office. He was lead in the same way as the first time. When he went inside the ninja that lead him bowed to the Mizukage and left immediately. Mei was sitting behind her desk, apparently finishing signing some documents. Naruto looked around and saw the older man with an eye patch looking at him. His look felt as if it was piercing, looking at you and inside you and behind you all at the same time. Naruto could not recognise the familiar sensation before Mei spoke out.

"So I see you came back. It is not unusual for people to keep their word but it is always pleasant when they do. Now take a seat and start your tale." Naruto slowly slid into the chair in front of him, still looking at the man in the corner of his vision. Mei noticed that and chuckled... giggled? Naruto wasn't really sure anymore.

"I thought I would be telling what happened only to you." Naruto said, not really angry. He just didn't want it spreading even if he did have to tell the Mizukage what happened. He raised an eyebrow when she smiled and waved the question away.

"We never said about it being only me but even if we did Ao sees everything, he would know anyway." Naruto was about to say something when he heard the last part. Now he remembered what that feeling was.

"It's the Byakugan, isn't it?" He blurted out and Mei's and Ao's eyes widened for a second before Ao's kunai was pressed against Naruto's throat.

"How did you know? And what are you going to do now?" Ao's voice was rough, somehow filled with experience and confidence. A lot of confidence and Naruto didn't want to test it out. He tried to breathe in but felt the sharp edge slide against his throat and felt a drop of blood run down his neck.

"I knew and worked with and... against people who had the Byakugan.'Sees everything'? That piercing gaze of yours. I could have been wrong but the way you reacted only proved me right." Naruto's voice had risen slightly and his eyes travelled to the kunai again when he felt it push a bit harder. "I won't tell anyone! I have no need to tell anyone, it's your business how you got it and what you do with it! I swear I won't tell anyone." They stared at each other before Ao huffed and removed the kunai.

"Back in my day people kept their word, I hope that for your own good you do so as well." Naruto gulped and nodded and then watched as Ao left the room.

"He likes you." Naruto stared at the Mizukage in disbelief. _'If that is him on my good side then I don't want to meet him when he is angry at me...'_"Well now that there are no more interruptions you can start" She sounded almost giddy but Naruto found it hard to use that word to describe a Kage, instead he decided to start his tale focusing only on the parts that needed to be said in order to understand how he gained his abilities. He saw how surprised she was when he mentioned that he met one of the swordsmen of the mist and that he lived to tell the tale. When he was finished she leaned back in her chair and looked straight at him. "That is hard to believe but for some reason I feel like I should believe you. I had no reason to not trust you so far. Well then that is all." Part of Naruto was shocked because she was just letting him go after all of this.

"You are just going to let me go? Don't you want to keep a clan secret... well secret?" She smiled again and laughed at his flustered face.

"Nope! The clan was assumed extinct during the time of the bloody mist" Her mood darkened a little at the mention of that time period. "That means that you didn't technically steal anything. Also I think you are too cute to send my hunter-nin after." Naruto fought hard to not let himself blush, he was sure that Jiraiya would be both laughing at him and be jealous of him both at the same time. There was just one more thing to ask for.

"*Cough* W-well it is nice to hear that I won't have to look behind my back all the time for now but there is one more thing I wanted to ask about." She nodded and waited for him to continue. "I got another thing from my meeting with Zabuza and Haku, I did my best to learn how to use it but it seems that I would never be able to wield it properly without the help of its original wielders."

"So it seems you took a souvenir from that fight, a large and very sharp souvenir and now you want help?" Naruto nodded and his eyes showed that he was serious. He would do nearly anything to learn how to wield Kubikiribōchō. For himself and to keep one of the promises he made. Mei scrutinised him for a moment before sending a pulse of chakra with her hand. They both stayed silent for a few minutes with only Yuki's slow breathing being heard in the background as she slept on the only couch in the room.

It was about five minutes later that the doors opened and a boy... man, Naruto had trouble telling his age, came in. He had light blue hair and wore glasses. His clothes were stripped, similar in style to the other ninja he saw in Kiri. When he sat down in the seat beside, Naruto saw that he was about a head taller than himself.

"Uhm, you wanted to see me Mizukage-sama?" Naruto was surprised at how shy the boy sounded. He looked powerful enough and the way he handled himself didn't suggest anything but his voice sounded as if he was a complete opposite of Ao.

"Yes Chōjūrō. Naruto here had some business with you." Naruto was slightly shocked, after seeing the other swordsmen he didn't expect someone like this Chōjūrō to be one of them. "Naruto if you could show us the sword. I'm curious to see it as well." Naruto nodded and stood up. He took out a scroll from one his pockets and unsealed Kubikiribōchō. Chōjūrō's mouth opened and closed while Mei just stared at the blade. Naruto scratched the back of his head as he got a bit embarrassed as everyone continued to stay silent.

"Ugh, so as you can see I need some help." Chōjūrō looked to the Mizukage not knowing what to say.

"So you want swordsmen training?" Naruto wasn't sure what to say, he didn't say that he did but there wasn't much else that he could do. "You know that becoming one of the swordsmen, even in training, is a long process that only the best of the best can take up?" Naruto nodded, his face set in determination. "You would also have to become a Kiri-nin..." Naruto froze. He knew that this would come up but it still felt weird. After leaving Konoha part of him decided to never be tied down to a village or a person again but this was a chance he wasn't sure if he could pass up. He nodded again. Mei smiled brighter than he had seen before and threw one of the drawers in her desk open. She took out a Kiri marked forehead protector with a black cloth like the one he used to own and threw it to Naruto. Chōjūrō meanwhile was looking between the two of them with shock and a bit of curiosity.

_-'I always had a feeling that if I refused she would have tied me to a chair and forced me to join the mist. She had motives of her own and I never asked, never probably will considering the current situation, but I suppose it doesn't matter. I would not have survived the next years without the mist.'_

"Consider yourself on a trial period."

**To Be continued...**


	13. Back with a Bang!

_Two years later..._

Their target was in sight. He was either very good at playing a fool or he really had no idea that they were right behind him. Naruto, his face hidden behind a mask, nodded to his partner and she launched into a short series of seals. When she finished not much changed to the eye of an untrained civilian but both Naruto and his partner saw that their targets movements stopped and his breath slowed down. The Genjutsu had set. Another nod and both masked ninja moved down to their target that was now oblivious to his surroundings, his minds stuck in a world of its own. The somewhat painful prick of a senbon needle that Naruto inserted into a certain pressure point brought an end to the Genjutsu. The man was panicking, his eyes wide as his body refused to respond. He was at the mercy of the two hunter-nin in front of him now. Naruto took out one of his kunai and held it up with one hand while the he held the man's head up by the hair with his other. The kunai swung in a wide horizontal slash and the headless body dropped down, cushioned by the soft morning grass. Naruto stared into the dead eyes for a second before kneeling down to seal the head away while his partner started onto her part, using a fire Jutsu to burn the body.

Arriving back inside the hunter-nin headquarters, where they received their assignments and stored their equipment, Naruto's partner left immediately. Naruto sighed and shook his head as he watched her go. Joining the hunter-nin wasn't his idea. Mei had insisted that it would help him disappear for some time, at least until things had calmed down. Also being surrounded by other hunter-nin was a good way to make sure he didn't try anything. A year later he managed to climb the ladder enough to start leading this duo squad on smaller missions, to gain experience. Fate had its way with him again and Shizuka, the Kiri kunoichi from the chunnin exams back in Konoha, had become his partner. From what he remembered of her she was always composed and mostly quiet but when he saw her again he saw only sadness and loss. A look one could see on the faces of older Shinobi who drunk themselves every night in random bars around the village. It didn't take long for him to finally hear the story of what happened.

Naruto remembered his first real opponent from the chunnin exams. Kikaku strived to become one of the swordsmen and apparently the Mizukage had decided to give him a chance. He was given a rank of chunnin and together with his two teammates was sent on a mission but missions sometimes go bad. He bit more than he could chew and only Shizuka had survived and with her came back the guilt, the self blame.

Naruto shook his head again as he pocketed his mask and looked himself in the mirror. The face staring back at him was smiling again. Something he still found strange even after so much time has passed. It didn't take long for him to realise the real reason to wearing a mask as a hunter-nin or ANBU. You and the mask were two different people. A ninja left all the guilt and other feelings with the mask and inside the locker. He looked at himself in the mirror and fixed his grey Kiri flak jacket. The smile widened when he remembered the day when he got the jacket together with his chunnin promotion only a month after arriving and then a jonin a year after. The other additions were the bandages around his neck that signified his connection with the swordsmen. The memory from two weeks ago when Chōjūrō deemed his training as a swordsmen finished still filled him with pride, especially when he recalled the comment Ao made when he saw him in his full attire.

"_Chōjūrō was right, you really look like Zabuza before he left. Switch the face and there wouldn't be much difference. More of the younger generation should take after their elders..."_

In the end he still needed to relax after the mission. Letting out a sigh he closed the locker and left the headquarters.

He didn't even need to say a word as the barman nodded to him and brought over a bottle of the same sake he ordered each time he came here. Behind him, Naruto could hear the loud voices of some drunken Shinobi. It seemed that they were celebrating their advancement to special-jonin. Naruto growled and ignored the voices, instead focusing on the small cup in his hand.

Years of being a ninja sharpens your senses, the fact that Naruto didn't drink anything yet helped as well when he caught an empty sake bottle with his free left hand and set it on the wooden bar top.

"How is it that a missing-nin has become one of our hunters in our village!? And he got the position faster than any of us! What a load of horseshit!" One of the Shinobi shouted from the table behind him. It was obvious that they meant for him to hear it but he couldn't lose control. He had to be better than them. From time to time Naruto thought how he exchanged one hate for another but then again this was nothing compared to Konoha so he couldn't complain. He growled before pushing all those thoughts away and downing the cup. As he was about to pour another he felt something move behind him and realized that he lost himself in his mind for too long and lost track of the people around him.

Naruto tilted himself back onto the bar as the drunk jonin sent a lazy punchy towards his face. The jonin stumbled forward as his punch met with nothing but air. Naruto's eyes turned feral as his feet connected with the drunk and sent him flying into the table where the other celebrating Shinobi were seated. The whole place went quiet except for the sound of cups rolling around on the floor and Naruto's growling as the group of drunk jonin where facing off against the single, still unofficial, swordsman.

The blonde was about to launch himself at the group but felt a hand grab his shoulder and pull him back slightly as he watched the opposing group's eyes widen with what seemed like an alcohol exaggerated fear. He turned his head around and found Ao looking at him sternly with his single eye. He tried to pull himself out of Ao's grip but he was unable to either due to the strength of the grip or him not really trying.

"Mizukage-sama wants to see you in her office right now. It seems there is some new info concerning you and suna." Naruto's shoulder's fell as a deep sigh left his lungs. He turned his head around and smiled apologetically at the bar owner who was still hiding behind the counter.

"Sorry." He shouted out as he ran out of the bar and towards Mei's office leaving behind Ao, a lot of slightly scarred civilians and some broken tables and bottles. Ao pinched his nose as he felt a headache arriving but he couldn't fault the boy. If someone tried that on him then no one would be able to stop him as he would be done with the drunks too fast. He took out a roll of notes, counted it up in his head and dropped some on the bar top before leaving himself.

When Naruto arrived in the Mizukage's office he found Mei sitting in her usual place with her nose deep inside a stack of scrolls. He grinned as he silently entered through the window and he could swear that one of the anbu that was always hidden somewhere in the office sniggered. He walked up to the front of her desk and smashed his hands against the desk making everything on top of it jump into the air, including the scrolls and books and stacks of paper. Mei herself jumped in her seat. When she finally regained her composure she set her glare on the grinning blonde standing in front of her.

"Sorry Mizukage-sama, you seemed so taken by those scrolls and I wanted to make sure that you knew I was here." Mei glared at him even more before grabbing a small file and scribbling something down on the sheet placed in the very front. Naruto looked on curiously but couldn't see what the file contained. "What was that?" Now it was Mei's turn to smile.

"Oh, that was just your new assignment once you come back from the mission I was about to give you. After you come back from suna you will be on patrol duty for two weeks." Naruto's mouth opened and closed a couple of times before his face finally settled down on a scowl.

"That's not fair! It's a whole week, can't you like reduce it down or something! I didn't do anything that bad... Also what is it about a mission in suna?" Mei's demeanour turned serious when suna was mentioned and she immediately held out a scroll for Naruto to read.

Naruto took the scroll and started reading it, he didn't even managed to get halfway through before he closed it up and placed it down on Mei's desk as he sat down.

"So something happened to the Kazekage?" Mei nodded.

"And they want help as in exchange for finishing the negotiations."

"They must be in a tight spot to call for help from us... you know I have a bad feeling about this." Mei nodded again as she started to read through the scroll again. They both nearly jumped out of their skins when the silence was broken by the very distinct sound of a summon. Naruto looked down onto his lap to see a small messenger toad with its tongue extended, trying to hand him a scroll. He took the scroll and the toad disappeared. Mei waited while Naruto read the scroll before he crushed it in his hand and burned it up with his chakra.

"The Akatsuki are on the move, finally after all those years they started coming up again." Mei eyes widened, the Kazekage was a host of the one tails... Naruto nodded to her unspoken question before standing up. "A team from Konoha is about to move out to suna, I'm going as well."

"You know I can't stop you, with you being one of the swordsmen and everything." Mei said with a sad smile.

"I know."

"Just don't break anything..." Naruto smiled and shook his head.

"No promises..." And he was gone. Mei closed her eyes and leaned back in her chair, she had to believe everything would be alright just as Naruto always did. Meanwhile Naruto has already taken all his gear and was running towards the Shinobi operated docks on the coast water country. He had to make his way to suna as fast as he could so a boat to fire or wave should do fine, until then all he could do was run faster.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Meanwhile the group of Konoha ninjas were already moving close to the border of river country. They have been travelling nonstop since the messenger bird from suna delivered a plea for help. Every one of the appropriate rank and experience who was free at the moment was sent as part of the rescue party. That didn't mean that the group was large. Tension within the elemental nations was rising; mistrust was creeping in despite the treaties signed between the major and minor villages. Defences were getting bolstered and ninja were sent to patrol the borders more than ever. Rumours of war sounded more real than ever. The 'only' ninja that Konoha could send were Kakashi of the Sharingan, Might Guy and the last apprentice of Tsunade of the sannin; Shizune. Kakashi looked up at the sun and motioned for the trio to speed up, they couldn't waste any time.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto jumped off the boat and onto the fire country territory for the first time in months. It didn't feel any different than when he walked on any other ground but the distinct look of the landscape brought back some memories. Naruto didn't even bother to look back as the boat left and instead he jumped straight into the trees. He pulled on a tiny bit of Kyuubi's chakra, just enough to allow him to run on all fours and started to speed towards Suna.

The sun started to rise as Naruto jumped off from yet another branch. At that speed everything looked the same but he had a feeling that he had passed into the land of rivers by now. The constant supply of chakra made sure that he felt as fresh as always, now he only had to continue without stopping. Naruto kept moving until he felt something unusual. The amount of chakra being thrown around nearby was enormous and farther away there seemed to be another fight going on. His suspicion was confirmed when he saw a giant dust cloud being thrown up into the air by some sort of explosion. His eyes just managed to pick out something flying out of the cloud. It looked like a strange white bird.

Naruto decided to trust his intuition and went after it, he ran parallel to it until he was close enough to see the bird and its passengers. His eyes turned red when he saw the red clouds of Akatsuki...

Kakashi was running out of options. Deidara was moving too fast and that damn bird of his was too agile. Nothing he knew could really work now and everything that could have worked had already failed. It seemed that he would fail this mission and the Akatsuki would run away with the Kazekage. That is until he felt a gigantic chakra build up in the tree line to the left. He looked on as something blue and white lunged from the trees and knocked straight into the blonde Akatsuki, knocking him off the bird. The bird started diving down and crashed together with the Akatsuki and the unknown ninja.

"What the hell! Who dared to touch my art, you will pay for this!" Kakashi barely heard Deidara over the sound of yet another explosion and had to cover his eye as a dust wave blew past him. When he moved his hand away the dust was already cleared. About twenty meters from them was the nearly destroyed clay bird with the Kazekage's body on top of it. What interested him more was the Kiri hunter-nin facing off against Deidara. He knew that suna has asked Kiri for help as well but to send only a single hunter-nin.

Naruto took out a single kunai and charged after Deidara who stood there with the smug look never leaving his face. Kakashi held back a sigh as he watched the hunter-nin charge an s-rank Nin with only a kunai. In the end he couldn't let him die if he could help it so he jumped in himself.

Deidara dodged a horizontal slash that was fast enough to probably take out a rookie jonin with a surprise head loss. Naruto didn't stop there and followed up with a low kick which missed again as Deidara flipped back, the smirk seemingly stuck to his face. Naruto realised too late that he was standing too close for too long near a ninja who used explosives when Deidara aimed his hand at him and out of the mouth located on the Akatsuki's palm shot out pieces of what Naruto assumed was explosive clay. It was only thanks to Kakashi's kick to Deidara's side that made the clay missiles miss. They exploded a few metres behind Naruto and again covered the area in dust.

Kakashi and Deidara managed to get out of the dust cloud engaged in a small taijutsu match. Deidara fighting harder than ever as the Sharingan eye he hated so much kept staring at him, reading his every move. Deidara's anger got in the way as it served for enough of a distraction for Kakashi to land a kick straight in his face, kicking him back and making Deidara tumble across the ground. Deidara picked himself up and reached into his clay pouch while grumbling under his nose.

Before Kakashi can react, Naruto runs out of the smoke moving faster than before and holding Kubikiribōchō in a two handed grip. The cleaver slashed in an upward strike, startling Deidara and making him release the clay spiders at Naruto instead of Kakashi.

"Katsu! Meet the true art of explosion!" The miniature spider mines exploded and when the smoke cleared nothing remained of the hunter-nin. Deidara started to laugh and launched another round of clay spiders to go for Kakashi.

Kakashi dodged the clay creatures but wasn't prepared for what came next. The people of suna described this bomb and how it destroyed part of the village.

"Now you will learn how to truly appreciate art! A single moment of beauty! Katsu!" And the clay statue exploded. The blast was toned down from what destroyed suna but it would still be enough, Kakashi knew that. His Sharingan eye started spinning and formed into the Mangekyō Sharingan. Kakashi could already feel the strain on his chakra but he focused on the explosion in front of him.

"Kamui!" What looked like a swirling tear in space appeared before Kakashi and, much to Deidara's anger, sucked in the whole force of the explosion. Naruto jumps in again this time wielding a very reflective kunai which seemed to be made of ice. Taking advantage of the distraction the blonde managed to stab the kunai into Deidara's shoulder before he had to dodge another piece of clay.

It was not even a blink of an eye; only thanks to Kakashi's still activated Mangekyō Sharingan did he see the hunter-nin appear out of thin air. The giant cleaver went down with enough force to cut off most of Deidara's left arm and part of the shoulder before the owner of the blade disappeared again as if he was never there. Deidara screamed in pain as he clutched the bleeding shoulder, his eyes wide in panic and moving around and searching for his opponent.

Now down on his knees Deidara knew he didn't have many options but there was still one more thing he could do to go out with a bang. His remaining hand reached for the pouch but didn't get a chance to do anything as the blonde Akatsuki felt himself being pulled backwards before being shoved into a tree. Meanwhile Kakashi looked on with wide eyes as Deidara disappeared, leaving only the strange kunai to drop down onto the ground.

Naruto focused his chakra into his hand and watched as pure ice chakra constructs in the shape of a claw grew around his hand, became his hand. Deidara shook himself out of the confusion caused by that strange form of travel just in time to feel excruciating pain again. He looked on as the mist-nin that he had been fighting shoved a claw of what looked like pure chakra into his shoulder. The longer it stayed in there the less he felt as the cold spread. Soon the skin on his remaining right arm turned deep blue and he couldn't feel it anymore. Deidara now knew that he was done and he couldn't even see the face of his opponent as it was hidden behind a mask.

Kakashi wasn't sure if he could get up now, the Sharingan technique still took a lot out of him. It was then that he saw the hunter-nin walking towards him with what he assumed was a clone walking behind him and carrying the unconscious Akatsuki. The hunter-nin remained silent as he lifted Kakashi up and helped him stand. Kakashi took a moment to gather his strength and moved to check on the Kazekage.

When Naruto and Kakashi reached the crash site they found the dead body of the Kazekage, killed by the extraction of his tailed beast. Kakashi could hear the angry growl from behind the mask and decided to observe the hunter-nin more as he seemed very familiar although he couldn't put down a definite name. Naruto lifted the body of Gaara and followed Kakashi to where he assumed was the other fight. When they arrived he had to calm himself as he saw Shizune healing some old woman after what seemed like a tough fight. The whole area around them was littered with parts of broken puppets; a lot of them looked half melted with poison.

Naruto placed Gaara down and saw how the old woman's eyes widened before they filled with guilt. Shizune was ready to fight when she saw an unknown masked Nin and a bopy of the ninja holding the Akatsuki member that took the Kazekage away.

Kakashi kept his eye on the hunter-nin as Chiyo and Shizune checked over Gaara's body. Those body movements, that stance and those strange abilities. It was then that he saw the blonde hair and realised how stupid he was. His eye widened when he looked at the mask and he wanted to slap himself. While the mask itself was the usual hunter-nin design, round and single colour only, he could now see the resemblance to Kyuubi's pictures and drawings they had in Konoha. The black markings around the eyes and top of the mask resembled the face of the tailed beast. Now it was too much to be a coincidence. _'Naruto...'_

Naruto listened how Chiyo explained the life transfer technique and how she would have to sacrifice her life to revive Gaara. Did she really think that she could just make everything better by sacrificing herself, that all it would take to erase her sins was to die?

"Here." He threw down the unconscious body of Deidara onto the ground side by side with Gaara's. "Use his chakra to fuel the technique. It should take all his and most of yours but you will live. You still have debts to repay, don't you?" He nearly growled the last part. Chiyo looked unsure for a moment before nodding and setting to work. With one hand over each body the chakra turned bright blue instead of the usual green like in most medical techniques. Everyone could see how the chakra moved between Deidara and Gaara and how Chiyo was getting more tired as the technique continued. When the chakra disappeared she collapsed forward and Shizune immediately started checking her vitals and breathed out in relief when the old lady still had a pulse. A minute later Gaara opened his eyes as if after a very long sleep.

"It is so quiet." Were the first words out of his mouth and while Kakashi and Shizune were confused Naruto thought he had an idea of what Gaara meant. With the Shukaku gone Gaara would not have to deal with the tailed beast calling for blood anymore. Now he could finally get some sleep.

"Now that everyone is alive and we all are relatively safe could you tell us what you are doing here... Naruto?" Shizune stared between the hunter-nin and Kakashi open mouthed. Her eyes were wide in shock while Kakashi's single eye was set straight at the masked Nin. Naruto's shoulder sagged in defeat and he sighed behind his mask. His hand went up and pulled off the mask revealing a face with a small sad smile. Kakashi and Shizune stared at him openly, the same blue eyes, the same whisker marks yet so changed and so matured. Then their eyes went up to his Kiri headband. Shizune stood up and slowly walked up to Naruto. Now they were standing around a meter away from each other and it was then that Shizune noticed that Naruto was actually taller than her now.

"He..." 'SLAM!' Shizune's fist connected with Naruto's face. "Oy! What the hell was that for?" Naruto shouted as he rubbed the sore on his face with his hand. Meanwhile Shizune was nearly boiling with anger.

"What...was...that...for?! For everything! You just got up and left. You didn't even bother to leave us a message and now you are asking questions!" Naruto wasn't sure if he was supposed to be sorry or angry so he instead he settled for silent. "Do you even know how many people were hurt because you just decided to leave?!" She looked like she wanted to say more but just shook her head and walked away to check up on the Kazekage.

"Are you happy?" This question threw Naruto off track. He moved his eyes to look at Kakashi and stared at him for a few seconds, thinking, before nodding.

"I still miss some people..." Naruto said sadly while looking in Shizune's direction. "But I have never been better. In Kiri I'm accepted, I have friends and they accept me for what and who I am. I'm respected in the whole village; I'm not living in fear everyday..." Kakashi looked away. Naruto was telling the truth. He had failed before but now Naruto found something good for himself and maybe it was better for everyone.

"That is good to hear Naruto. I guess I will see you around."

"Wait, you won't try to bring me back?" Kakashi just laughed and shook his head.

"You took out an s-rank nin nearly by yourself without getting hurt at all and look at us. Even if we tried we wouldn't be able to do it." Naruto smiled sadly again and nodded. Kakashi did his trademarked wave and left to where Shizune was helping Chiyo up. During their talk Gaara had managed to stand up and was thinking straight again. Gaara and Naruto stood in front of each other, waiting for the other to move, until Gaara finally decided to put his hand forward and Naruto immediately shook it with a grin.

"I will make sure that the treaty with Kiri is set by the end of the week..." He then went silent; it seemed that he didn't know what to really say. "I... Thank you Naruto." Naruto grinned even wider.

"People like us have to stick together you know, if you need help all I will do all in my power to provide it Kazekage-sama." Naruto chuckled a bit when Gaara smiled even a little at the end. He slipped his mask on before doing the hunter-nin routine on Deidara's body and leaving towards Kiri. Three and half pairs of eyes watched as the grey of the flak jacket and the blonde hair could not be seen in the foliage anymore.

**To Be Continued...**


	14. The Catalyst

"You mean to tell me that you saw him, talked with him and did not even try to restrain him?!" Tsunade nearly shouted at the one eyed jonin standing in front of her. She leaned forward in her seat and rubbed her face, the job was starting to get to her and this would make things that much harder.

"Yes I did Hokage-sama but there was nothing we could do. If we took action then he would have escaped or done considerable damage to us." Tsunade nodded. Of course she knew that if he got that much stronger as Kakashi's report suggested then there really wasn't much they could have done. Especially after they looked through past sightings of Kiri hunter-nin over the past year and were able to assign at least six A ranked assassinations to Naruto. She sighed and was about to send Kakashi away until the doors burst open and the three council elders entered.

"This is unacceptable! We can't let Kirigakure get away with this!" Koharu shouted as she nearly ran up to the Hokage's desk. Homura was right behind her while Danzo settled farther behind to observe.

"What do you suggest we do? Start a war?" Tsunade shouted in Koharu's face. The elder wanted to shout back but was stopped by Homura.

"No, we want our Jinchūriki back in the village where he belongs." He stated as calm as he could. Tsunade sat back in her chair and looked at the two elders in disgust.

"So that is the only reason you want him back? Well I'm sorry to say that it's not possible to bring back our Jinchūriki because we never had one..." Tsunade wanted to laugh at the faces of the elders. Even Danzo looked confused.

"What do you mean? Of course we had a Jinchūriki; Konoha was in possession of the nine-tails for years!" Tsunade smiled even wider.

"Yes we did but the fourth defeated the Kyuubi a bit more than seventeen years ago didn't he? There is nothing else since a lot of the documents from that time period have gone missing and Naruto Uzumaki is only an orphan of the attack... unless you know something that I don't?" She looked both the elders straight in the eyes. Homura and Koharu didn't respond and instead decided to leave the room. Danzo lingered behind looking Tsunade straight in the eyes before he turned around and left himself. Tsunade opened one of the drawers and poured herself some sake from her 'hidden' stash.

"Oh Naruto, even when you are not here you still cause problems..." She murmured before shaking her head and downing the cup.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

The situation in Kiri was different but its Kage was not entirely happy with the situation either.

"I have to leave today, the toads have called me in and I have tried to delay it as much as I could." Mei nodded but Naruto knew she wasn't happy with this. The tension was growing stronger and now one of her most powerful ninja would be gone for who knows how long and she would have no idea where he was.

"How long will you be gone?" Naruto scratched the back of his head while thinking, trying to remember what the messenger toad said.

"I think it will be two months at most." Mei's jaw nearly dropped. Two months?! Naruto's hands flew up into a defensive posture and he chuckled nervously. "But don't worry, if I'm really needed then you can always tell Yuki and she will reverse summon herself to me. It will take time but she knows how to do it." Mei let out a sigh and Naruto knew he had won. "I will be back before anyone notices and I promise I will try not to break anything."

"Go before I change my mind Naruto. I'm still expecting something from Konoha after your last excursion." She shuffled through some of her papers, trying to find something. "It is starting to worry me. With all the tension in the air this could go down really badly..." Naruto could only nod sadly.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Danzo after leaving the meeting with the Hokage had went straight to meet his root forces; he had a special mission for them. He laughed to himself, his headquarters were right under their noses yet they could do nothing. Of course he knew that everyone knew that root was still active but with no proof they were powerless, even the Hokage. As he entered his 'planning' room he knew that his soldiers were listening, waiting for orders.

"Take five units. Travel to Kiri. You know what to do once you get there." There was no sound yet Danzo knew that his plans were already in motion.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto has not visited the land of toads in a long time. After joining Kiri Jiraiya had informed him that they should limit their meetings even more and soon seeing his old mentor face to face has become a rare occurrence. He nervously pulled on the collar of his jacket as the toads stared him down as he travelled the steps that led to the small house of the two sage toads that Jiraiya had introduced him to during his first visit here. Looking around he did not see Gamabunta soaking in his usual spot and part of him started to wonder what a toad of his size could be doing in his free time.

The house was more of a small hut made from wood and baked mud and Naruto had doubts that he could walk inside even if he was crouching. The round wooden door flew open before Naruto could get a chance to knock on it. Before he had a chance to react something grabbed him by the hand and started to pull him with incredible strength towards a place unknown to him.

"What the hell! Let me go..." Naruto's screams made a couple heads turn but no one reacted. He trashed and tried to get free until he was dropped on a hard stone floor.

"Why did you have to drag him like that all the way, I'm sure he would have come along by himself if you gave him a chance!" Shouted a small green toad with a white Mohawk and goatee. Naruto was shocked when he saw who it was that dragged him here.

"You asked me to bring him as fast as I could as soon as he arrived Pa; I only did what you asked." Replied the green and purple toad. 'Pa' grumbled under his nose while he walked towards Naruto who was getting up and dusting himself off from the journey.

"I'm sorry for Ma Naru-chan but the matter I urgent." Naruto thought about being angry about all of this but the serious look in Fukasaku's eyes made him reconsider.

"Ok Pa, what's the deal? Why was it so important for me to get here so... fast." Shima had the decency to look a bit sorry for his journey.

"The Great toad sage has looked into the future again. We have never seen him like this. There was no actual prophecy this time." Ma picked up where Pa trailed off and Naruto saw that they both looked like there was some heavy load on their shoulders.

"We think that he might be reaching his time soon. He spoke what seemed like random gibberish but we picked out what we think is important." Naruto seeing a longer talk dropped down to sit on the floor again, now somewhat level with the toad sages.

"He spoke of a sage and the end of a line. We thought he meant Jiraiya at first but Jiraiya is not a true sage." Seeing the confusion in Naruto's eyes Pa continued. "We will explain what we mean soon enough. He then spoke of the child of the prophecy. That is why we think he meant you." Naruto nodded. He still remembered how Jiraiya had told him the back-story behind his first book and the child of the prophecy... but for that child to be him? It was a ridiculous thought.

"But why? How can you be sure that it is me?" Shima looked at Fukasaku who nodded his head.

"Pa is right. The child of the prophecy was supposed to be a student of Jiraiya. You are the only one of his students left alive and thanks to some other clues we are sure it is you." Naruto felt more confused than he felt in years, just as everything seemed to start falling into place for him something had to come and mess it up for him again.

"So what does this mean for me?" He said as he looked between the two toad sages who smiled sadly at him.

"Even we can see that dark times are coming ahead but that look into the future can only mean that it's closer than we think it was and we need you to be ready to fulfil the prophecy. From today you are starting your sage training." Naruto straightened up and nodded. Pa and Ma nodded to each other before they launched into the theory behind Senjutsu.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Meanwhile in Kiri everything seemed as peaceful as ever. Although many had already noticed the lack of Naruto as some places became more quiet than usual. One of those places was the headquarters of the seven swordsmen of the mist which now housed only two active swordsmen. Chōjūrō was walking around the halls of the building, looking at the pictures and paintings of the previous generations of swordsmen. It was at those times that he really thought of what an honour it was to share the title with those great swordsmen of the past. He was about to head back to his own house when his overly sensitive hearing, developed thanks to the use of the silent killing technique, picked up a nearly silent shuffle a couple meters behind him. 'Naruto-san is not here and won't be for weeks... that means...'

His eyes widened in realisation and only thanks to his reflexes did he manage to dodge a barrage of senbon that would have surely otherwise killed him. Before he could reach for his sword a wind Jutsu had pushed him into and through a wall and into another chamber in the building. When the dust settled he finally saw the four attackers standing before him. 'Konoha...'

The alarm around the whole village rung loudly as all available anbu started to move out to search for a capture the group of foreign Shinobi which invaded Kirigakure. Somehow they managed to fool the mist surrounding the village but once they got inside the invaders did not bother with stealth. Mei watched as a ball of lava burned through the chest of one who tried to attack her. 'This is ridiculous! Did they really think this would work?' She pumped chakra into her legs and kicked the wall sending the ninja behind it flying, the rubble falling straight onto him. She quickly walked up to the pile and dragged out the body before snapped his neck just to be sure. It was then that she saw the forehead protector. She spat the name as if it was poison. "Konoha..."

It did not take long for the anbu to deal with the group of the Konoha Nin which tried to 'invade' Kiri. Mei was sitting in her office when one of her anbu captains dropped appeared in front of her desk, kneeling down immediately.

"Report." Came out her tired voice. The anbu lifted his head slightly and nodded.

"We counted five attacks in total, all containing four ninja. They targeted you, the swordsmen headquarters, the residences of the members of the council and the apartment of Uzumaki Naruto." He was startled into a stop when the Mizukage's eyes grew darker and angrier as he listed the last target. "Only one had managed to escape. The others have already been transported to be searched and the bodies dissected and put away." He then fell silent and waited.

"Were any of the attacks successful?" He flinched when he met her gaze again by mistake but answered nonetheless.

"Yes... the two elders have been found dead at their homes. Two members of the council are in critical condition. Others got away with only minor injuries." Mei nodded again before falling back into her seat.

"Bring me a full written report first thing tomorrow morning. Also tell the medical division I expect some fast results this time. They will have time for their... 'Play' later." The last words held a tiny tone of disgust.

"Of course Mizukage-sama." The anbu said before disappearing again. When he got back to the anbu and hunter-nin HQ he slumped down on the nearest chair he could find. Everyone told him how great it would be when he became anbu captain but dealing with an angry Kage still left him shaking.

Soon enough an emergency meeting of the council was called. When Mei entered the voices did not calm down as they usually did and instead everyone started shouting even more. Her head started throbbing with the feeling of a headache as the events of the day started piling up and all the shouting only amplified it.

"Shut up everyone!" Her voice while loud could not be heard over the arguing council members. The glob of lava sent into the wall behind them did manage to quiet the room though. "Now that I have your attention we can start this meeting." She waited until all eyes were on her before continuing. "As you all know we were attacked less than two hours ago. You can also see that some of the members of the council are missing. You will get a full report of the attack tomorrow morning..."

"We all know what happened. They attacked us and our families! We can't let Konoha get away with this! It's time we put them in their place!" There were several shouts of approval. Mei's face grew angrier as the council members continued to talk over her.

"We can't make any decision in haste and under the effects of what happened tonight..."

"There is nothing you can do to stop this Mizukage-sama. We as the council recognise your stance and while we agree that you brought the village out of crisis that was the bloody mist..." Many older ninja in the room suddenly looked as if they had seen ghosts from the past as just the name brought back memories they probably wanted to get rid of. "But this was a sign of war and we have to respond! Lets vote, those who want to deal with today's breach of the treaties set up after the last war please put your hand up." Most of the people in the room had their hands up in the air. The councillor looked at Mei with sympathy. "I'm sorry Mizukage-sama but the council has decided; now the choice is in your hands. Will you help us or not."

Mei had no idea what to say but she nodded anyway. It was done and there would be no going back. The council left the room as the meeting was decided to be over. She dropped her head into her hands. She felt like a child again, lost with no idea what to do. Of course she would help; she would do anything for her village. She swore to protect it and its people with her own life but after witnessing the bloody mist she wanted to stay away from large conflict if possible. She felt Ao walk up to her side and she felt his hand on her shoulder. She looked up and saw him staring right at her. The look in his eyes, the look of a veteran of life and war told her that she would just have to deal with it. She nodded and with some new confidence stood up and left the meeting room. She had tons of work laid out in front of her.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"Focus Naru-chan! And stop fidgeting so much!" Pa shouted from below at Naruto who currently was sitting cross legged on a board which was balancing on a long pole. He had been at this for days and still wasn't ready. He wanted to move onto training more fitting for him yet seeing the consequences of failure in later stages of training could be seen all around him. The stone toad statues were all around him, all staring at the oil pool that was behind him. 'Focus Naruto! Focus!' The idea of sitting still for longer periods of time never sat with him well. He had too much energy to just waste time like that and there was so much he still had to do but this time he would do it. Steadying himself and clearing his mind as best as he could Naruto closed his eyes and tried again.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Tsunade downed another cup of sake as she read the report. The two elders were dead and the main files library was compromised and the culprits... her hands nearly tore the paper when she saw where the ninja were from. It seemed as if Kiri was getting ready for war... but a question continued to ring through her head. 'Why?'

The situation quickly started running out of control. The old peace treaties made up after the last war were broken time and time again as Kiri started to move its influence inland from the coast. Sand has backed out as it had treaties with both countries and only helped to house refugees fleeing from the fighting that seemed to erupt in the villages around fire country. The fire and water lords tried to negotiate but things quickly deteriorated into a fight in politics as well as between the ninja villages. Outposts were captured, supply wagons taken, towns lay in ruins but most of all blood was spilled, staining the ground over which even more ninja pushed forward. After a month things seemed to calm down as both sides came to a stop. Yet even then neither side wanted to even think about treaties, the reasons for starting all of this nonsense was quickly disappearing under the piles of bodies and letters with deepest apologies being sent to the families of those who would never come back. And as the sun was setting down, the sky stained blood red, one man couldn't help but smile as his plans were coming into fruition. Soon he would have his property back and then everything would fall in place just as he has been planning all along.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto saw that both Pa and Ma had been getting more and more 'twitchy' with each day. He had a feeling that they kept something from him, something very important but he knew when not to ask no matter how much he wanted to know. The further he got into the sage training the harder it got. It seemed as if everything he learned was the exact opposite of him. It required patience, clear thoughts and lots of concentration. There was a reason why he never could learn the harder medical techniques that Haku had left behind. There was one thing that bothered him though. The fox has been quiet for months now and he was happy with the situation just as it was. The dreams or visions or whatever they were seemed to calm down and had nearly stopped by now except for a single recurring one of a single figure standing in front of what seemed like a tailed beast. A single image that he could only see through a haze but that was not what bothered him. It was the feeling of impending doom, the slow and silent churning in his seal he could feel after long periods of meditation. As if the fox was..._anticipating_something. He swore he could feel triumph come from the seal when Fukasaku told him that they could not fuse with him to help with gathering sage chakra because of the Kyuubi.

"We have to tell him! You've seen him; he knows that something is going on!" A voice somewhere far away shouted and Naruto barely picked it up.

"You know that he isn't ready! It won't do any good to tell him now!" Now Naruto knew that it was about him. Letting out a growl he decided that he couldn't wait any longer. He dropped down and shunshined to the place where he heard the conversation coming from, starling the toad sages with his arrival.

"Tell me what exactly won't do me any good?" He ground out and Pa was about to reply until Ma laid a webbed hand on his shoulder. Pa nodded sadly before looking back at Naruto who had an expecting look on his face.

"Things aren't well in the elemental nations... a war broke out and we think it might get worse in a matter of weeks, maybe even days..." Naruto looked at the two in shock. 'A war? Between who?' Shima seemed to sense the question coming.

"Kirigakure and Konoha have been fighting for over a month now." As soon as he heard that Kiri was in a war, especially with Konoha he wanted to get back and he would have probably ran straight through the portal leading to Konoha if not for Pa who kicked him straight in the chest with extra sage power behind the attack, making Naruto fly back a few meters and crash back onto the ground. When he opened his eyes he was facing an angry looking Fukasaku.

"This is why we did not tell you! Was all that training for nothing? There is nothing you can do for now other than continue your learning." Naruto opened his mouth to retort but Pa continued. "Jiraiya is already working with his spy network to find why all of this started. He said that it all seemed to sudden, apparently he has some leads and we won't keep things from you from now on but only if you promise that you won't leave until you finish your training." He saw that both Pa and Ma looked even older and more tired than they always did. Toads and sages were all about tranquillity and harmony and he could only imagine how much it hurt them to see all the fighting and not be able to do anything about it.

"You're right, I'm sorry." He stood up and headed back to the oil fountain. "I promise and I don't break my promises, you know that Pa." Pa nodded with a small smile.

It was another month before he was able to return to Kirigakure and part of him regretted not coming back earlier. The reverse summoning had sent him back just in front of the north entrance to the village which gave him a really good view of what the ongoing war was doing to his home.

The whole place seemed to be under martial law. Shops were closed down and some of the civilian blocks were emptied out. As soon as he was spotted he was immediately surrounded by at least ten ninja he could see and if he tried to sense the others out it would probably double the number.

The Anbu captain who was probably the highest in rank in the group stepped forward. Naruto saw him eye his Kiri uniform and the sword on his back and the anbu relaxed just a bit. They all knew him but they had to stick with protocol.

"State your name, rank and reason for absence."

"Uzumaki Naruto, Jonin, extended mission." He then gave the anbu his identification and his mission scroll signed by the Mizukage. The anbu captain eyed him for a few more seconds before he nodded making the others disappear back onto their patrol spots.

"The Mizukage is awaiting you in her office Uzumaki-san." Naruto didn't need to be told twice and soon the north gate was empty again. Only the sound of wind could be heard as it echoes around the empty streets.

Mei quickly brought him up to speed with the current situation and was surprised when Naruto didn't immediately ask to be sent to the front lines to continue the push. Instead he had asked to see the bodies of the ninja who attacked Kiri and had started this whole mess in the first place.

"I don't know why you want to see them, our medics and researchers have already looked over them hundreds of times. You know how the procedure works in Kiri." She started getting angry when he didn't answer and continued to walk down to the division where the bodies were kept, the fact that as the Mizukage she could order him to stop escaped her at the moment.

"Exactly, that means that the bodies are in perfect condition and there is something I need to see for myself." Was the only thing she heard from him until they got to the 'morgue'. Naruto quickly grabbed the name list and went through it until he found one of the Konoha Nin. He nearly ran to the freezer and opened it up as fast as he could. The lights overhead flickered when he rolled out the shelf containing the body closed up in a black bag. Mei could only watch as Naruto opened up the bag with so much determination and... was it hope? What did he hope to find in there? Then he did something which shocked her even more. When he was finished looking at the face of the Konoha Nin's corpse he forced the mouth open, carefully enough as to not disrupt the preservation seals placed on the body. He grimaced as he forced his hand inside the open mouth and Mei stopped blinking when he ripped out the tongue. Her breath hitched, and it showed with the mist that formed due to the cold temperature, as she felt the killing intent coming from Naruto. She always thought that she knew what he was capable of but this was worse than she had ever seen him.

She took a step back when his eyes, his now blood red and slitted eyes, turned to look at her. He then started to move towards her. The tongue still in his hand, drops of cold now jelly-like blood dropping onto the floor making a small trail behind him. When he got close enough he brought the piece of meat closer to her face and she could see some sort of seal imprinted on the tongue.

"Do you know what this is?" His voice was cold and she could hear the slivers of Kyuubi coming forward but she nodded anyway, of course she knew what this is.

"It's a silencing seal. Our medics have documented it already but what does it have to do with anything." She set her glare on him but to her, hidden, surprise there was no effect.

"Yes it is a silencing seal. It makes sure you keep your secrets but what you don't know that this particular seal is used only by one group." Pieces of the puzzle started to fall in place. "It's Root! Danzo's men! All of this was a setup, we all were played and we danced to his music like good little fucking monkeys!" He threw the dead piece of meat against the wall in anger and they both watched with a hint of morbid fascination as it slowly slid down, leaving a black-red stain on the otherwise spotless white wall. She broke the silence by asking the question to which she was sure he had an answer.

"But why? Why would he want to start a war?" His eyes slowly turned back to the blue she was used to seeing but they held more sadness than ever before. She could barely hear his response as it came out in a whisper.

"Me... He wants to draw me out so he can capture me and reseal the Kyuubi. He thought that I wouldn't fight against my past comrades and that would make me an easy target." Part of her was shocked and yet the Kage part of her understood the strategy no matter how mad and reckless it was. "After it was all over Tsunade would have lost support of the people and the council and he, the one who captured the nine tailed beast and made it into a weapon for Konoha would be easily the next choice for a leader." He ran a hand across his face and then through his hair, seemingly not even bothered that he was spreading the left over blood that stained both his hands. If that was not a reason to worry then the dead, emotionless laugh surely was. Mei watched as he turned back to staring at the wall quietly and she had no idea how to deal with this. Normally she would shout at him or smile that smile of hers which always worked but now she was lost again. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath and then exhaled it slowly and watched as the water vapour whirled around in the cold air in front of her.

"Naruto, we have to act then. This could stop everything. We could stop all this pointless fighting right now." Naruto nodded before turning back to face her again but she saw the he did not look at her but far far behind her.

"You do that Mei. I was always better at dealing with things directly. I will just remove the root of the problem." Her eyes widened as she understood what he meant but before she could stop him he was already gone. She growled before shunshining back to her office and calling Ao.

Ao arrived a few seconds later and saw how distressed Mei looked.

"Mizukage-sama..."

"Ao!" she shouted, the urgency couldn't have been clearer. "Gather the troops and get the bodies of the Konoha-nin. We are going to Konohagakure!" Ao's eyes widened but he knew when to listen to an order. He nodded and left to do what he was told to do. Mei stood up and took the Kage hat from its pedestal, there was no elder to hand it to her this time. Hopefully this whole trip would not be for nothing.

**To Be Continued**


	15. Uprooting

"Amaterasu." Itachi's voice could be barely heard as the crackling of the black fire spread through the air. Sasuke was forced to use the cursed seal earlier than he had anticipated as to dodge the fires of hell that continued to spread and chase him under his brother's control. The fight has been going on longer than he or Orochimaru had anticipated and a sliver of worry inside Sasuke's mind started to form, maybe he wasn't strong enough yet... Then he saw the small slip in Itachi's footing as he launched a barrage of Chidori senbon. Itachi was slowing down, he was getting tired but he couldn't finish it yet. He still had questions to ask.

"At least tell me this brother before you die! Why did you do it? Answer me!" Itachi's answer was a great fireball surging at an enormous speed towards its target.

"It is more complicated than you think little brother. Sometimes even I doubt that I knew what happened that day but I can tell you that everything I did was for the good of the village." Itachi had to activate his Susanoo to stop the giant snake Sasuke has summoned.

"The village?! You killed your own clan, your own family!" Sasuke shouted as he commanded his summon to strike again but was pushed back as the Yata mirror absorbed the attack and the Susanoo immediately followed up with the Sword of Totsuka.

"Our clan was corrupt. They planned to overthrow the Hokage, to take over the village. Imagine how many would have died if I had not done what I did." The calmness in Itachi's voice only made Sasuke angrier. He wanted to end it more than ever but it seemed as if his brother's Susanoo was invincible.

"Then why did you leave me?! Do you really hate our clan so much that you wanted me to suffer like this?" He could barely see Itachi's face at this distance but Sasuke knew that his time has come. He looked up at the sky and smiled as he saw the storm clouds. Activating the last stage of the cursed seal he charged up his most powerful Jutsu.

"Kirin!" The silence before the storm proved to be true as there was no sound for a second before an explosion rocked the whole clearing as the ultimate lightning Jutsu connected with the ultimate defence. When Sasuke opened his eyes he realised that he was on the ground and not in the best shape, the dust cleared and he then saw that he failed. Itachi's Susanoo, while broken and incomplete, was still standing.

Itachi slowly approached his little brother and made Susanoo down at Sasuke. Sasuke closed his eyes as he thought that it was the end until he felt the tip of the sword of Totsuka slice into his shoulder. He couldn't hold back the blood boiling scream as he felt flesh ripping pain course through his body. Then it all stopped and when he could open his eyes again he saw Itachi, his Susanoo no longer activated, stumbling towards him. Itachi fell onto his knees beside his younger brother and Sasuke could see the blood dripping down from his eyes mixing with tears. The eyes that now were full of regret and pain, pain hidden away for years.

"I see that I went about doing all of this the wrong way now. I was selfish, I wanted to redeem myself Sasuke but there is no redemption for people like me." They both stayed silent as Itachi thought about his next words which would probably his last. He brought one of his hands up to his face and smeared the blood out of one of his eyes. "My eyes Sasuke. They hold the answers you seek and you will need them to accomplish your goals...Forgive me Sasuke..." A cough ripped through his throat, trails of blood leaking from his mouth and eyes. "...It ends with this." It was the first time in many years that Sasuke saw his older brother smile and it was just before he died. It seemed as if he finally accomplished his goal but then why did he feel nothing? No sense of accomplishment, no victory... nothing. He couldn't stop the tears from coming as he turned his head to look at the dead form of his brother laying beside him. He couldn't stop now. Itachi's words made him realise that everything went much deeper than he thought it did and he would get to the bottom of this. Stuck deep in his thoughts, his mind tangled by emotions he did not experience in a long time, Sasuke did not notice that the seal that marked his neck for over four years had disappeared. What he could feel was the ripping pain that went through his eyes as they evolved into something so much more.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto had already entered fire country and has been travelling towards Konoha as fast as his legs allowed him to without using Kyuubi's chakra. If he did then surely he would have been caught as that chakra could be felt for miles around the source if one paid attention and he was sure that Konoha placed sensors around its borders. It would probably take another week to get there without getting detected but he had to do this. 'All of this... It's my fault... I will deal with this myself even if it's the last thing I do...'

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"Hokage-sama! Hokage-sama, we received a scroll from Kiri directed to you. We checked it and it seems to be safe." Said an anbu after he dropped down through an open hospital window and had to catch up with Tsunade who was running between beds, checking up on patients and instructing the other medics. She grabbed the scroll from him and left for her office immediately. She didn't expect this, especially not now when Kiri was seemingly getting an advantage. The border scouts reported that about a week ago the Kiri troops have moved into defensive positions and reinforced their outposts as if they had no intention of moving further into fire country. She tore off the seal and unrolled the scroll as soon as she sat in her chair. Her eyes quickly skipped the usual introductions on formal letters and moved onto the more important parts. Her jaw clenched and a fire lit in her eyes the further she read. This was either a very obvious trap or a real chance to settle things, for now at least. What made her angry was not the request of a meeting between the Kages especially since it was to be done in neutral territory, what made her blood boil is what she read between the lines. It seemed that they both were played and deep inside she knew by whom. Tsunade gathered her things and pressed the intercom on her desk.

"Shizune, Jiraiya came back to the village today. Get him and tell him that we are leaving Konoha for a trip to Suna. Tell him to pick out two other people who will go with us." Tsunade leaned back in her chair when she heard Shizune's 'affirmative'. Maybe she would finally get to see Naruto. An overly sweet smile appeared on her face when she thought about what she would do to the boy for all the pain he caused to the people he left in Konoha. She stood up and went over to where the Kage hat was resting on its shelf. She took it in her hands and slowly placed it on her head. She could only smile sadly as she looked into her reflection in the large windows that looked over the whole village. She picked up the robe that accompanied the Hat and placed it on herself as she went outside of her office to meet the small assembly of people waiting for her.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto stood on a branch in the canopy of the forest a couple kilometres from the village hidden in the leaves. He had no idea where to even look for Danzo and he knew that he couldn't be cocky about any of this. All of this had to be perfect, in and out just like a hunter-nin was supposed to. He remembered Danzo as one of the elders. One arm and one eye, a veteran of war. He that he could not underestimate his opponent no matter the age or he would pay the price with his life and then all of this would be for nothing. 'Well it's now or never...' He stood still and focused on the chirping of birds and feeling of wind gently blowing against his skin and the rhythmic swaying of the tree he was standing on. Everything slowed down until he finally felt it. He released a slow breath and opened his eyes which now where not the usual blue or the Kyuubi red. Instead they were yellow with horizontal, bar shaped pupils and an orange pigmentation around his eyes. The markings of a true Sage.

Naruto took in a deep breath and revelled in the feeling of the forest and the natural energy around him. It was like a moment of clarity and peace in this messed up world but all good things had to come to an end. He focused on extending his sensing ability through the plants and animals that lived all around Konoha until he finally found what he was looking for. The find came with a surprise. It seemed that Danzo was already in a fight with someone. Someone Naruto knew very well. Someone Naruto made a promise to a long time ago. Pinpointing the exact location of the fight he gathered water vapour from the air and formed two ice kunai in his hands. With the extra strength from Sage mode he threw one of the kunai in the direction he wanted to head in and disappeared.

Sasuke stared down the enemy in front of him with pure hate. Not only was this the person that was responsible for the order that made his brother destroy the whole clan but it was also the person who took the eyes of his fallen family and implanted them into that abomination of an arm. He has seen many things while he worked under Orochimaru and this did not put him off, it just made him angry. Angry that he couldn't see past his hate before and Itachi paid for that. Sasuke tightened the grip around his sword as his eyes turned into the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan. The last gift from his older brother came with information sealed within the eyes and it explained so much.

Sasuke charged with the sword of Kusanagi, electrified arcs jumping from the sword to the earth as he ran full speed ahead. It would have worked if not for the fact that his opponent had a Mangekyō Sharingan of his own and that damn technique of his which made him invincible. All he needed was a small distraction...

The distraction arrived in the form of a blonde haired sage coming seemingly out of nowhere and swinging his own cleaver sword in a wide overhead arc. Danzo's eyes widened as he barely dodge in time only to feel the Uchiha's chokuto slice a gash on his back. A point blank vacuum sphere forced Naruto to respond with a quick ice shield. Naruto growled when he felt the last of the natural chakra leave him as it was used to condense the water in the air to defend against the wind Jutsu.

Danzo continued to dodge as Sasuke barraged him with lightning fast strikes from with his blade, all aimed at the arm containing the sharingan. Danzo knew that if he lost that arm then it would be over for him. He would not be able to defeat both of them without Izanagi.

"What are you doing here dobe?! This is my fight. Do not interfere!" Sasuke snarled as he eyed Naruto. His glare turned deadly when he saw the giant sword and the ice kunai as they reminded him of their first mission. Naruto turned his head and gave him a sarcastic smile.

"I see you haven't been doing well then since he is still alive. I also have my reasons for wanting him dead so shut up and cooperate." Sasuke wanted to refuse yet he knew that his eyes were not fully healed yet and as much as he hated it he would need help. He still refused to acknowledge and charged in with a Chidori, Naruto followed shortly by moving behind Danzo with his ice mirror kunai. Sasuke missed the Chidori by millimetres and they both had to dodge as Danzo used one of the sharingan to launch the unquenchable black fire at them.

"Susanoo!" Danzo seemed unfazed by the towering chakra creation in front of him and uses Izanagi to faze through a strike from Susanoo's Sword of Totsuka. Naruto meanwhile has gone into his two tailed mode and was now focusing on a single seal while running around to flank Danzo. The area in a matter of seconds was covered by a thick mist. The enraged sounds of Danzo coming from within the mist made Naruto wanted to chuckle as it seemed that even his wind Jutsu could not push the mist away. Naruto closed his eyes for a second and smirked when he could feel the positions of everyone within the mist. It seemed that his new alteration had worked.

"Don't think this will work! The sharingan can see through everything!" Shouted Danzo as he tried another vacuum blade in hopes to disperse the mist. The truth was that even with the sharingan he could barely see the outlines of his two opponents. Then one of them disappeared... Danzo quickly turned and regretted it as pain immediately ran through all of his upper body. Hundreds of miniature cuts littered his skin and when he ran his hand across his skin he felt the hundreds of ice shards stuck in it. His eyes widened as he realised what was happening. The brat was condensing and freezing the mist around him at will. Only a twitch reaction saved him from the cleaver as Izanagi again activated in the last second. He turned around and ignored the returning pain but once again saw no one. He was forced to dodge again as the Uchiha attacked with his Chidori again. The two brats had him on the defensive and he felt that he did not have much of Izanagi time left within the eyes in his hand.

"Amaterasu!" The eternal fire did it and the mist turned to steam and evaporated around him but it did not save him from a Chidori spear going straight through his artificial arm and taking out two sharingan eyes in the process. In his rage he also did not see the top most layers of skin and flesh on his body dying away, numbed and frozen by the frostbite effect of Naruto's ice shards. Naruto follows straight up with a barrage of Chidori senbon and attacks using sword of Kusanagi by himself, aiming straight for the arm forcing Danzo to resort to using a wood wall to put some distance between the two. It is then that Danzo realises that the Kyuubi brat had disappeared and that the mist started congregating around a single place.

Only their sharingan allowed them to dodge as a huge claw of what looked like a mix between chakra and ice swiped in front of them, aiming at Danzo. It wasn't until they saw that the thing which attacked them looked like a white version of the Kyuubi standing about half as tall as a Susanoo did at full height. A second later it launched itself at Danzo and seemingly went through him before dispersing. When Sasuke could see Danzo again he saw the hundreds of deep lacerations on his body. Naruto appeared at Sasuke's side looking a bit winded.

"That took more than I thought it would... but I took out three more." Naruto said as he looked at the bleeding form Danzo and Sasuke nodded. He hated to recognise it but he saw how powerful Naruto had become and some part rejoiced in that. It would be a challenge when they got to fight against each other and it would come to that sooner or later, they both knew that. Naruto nodded back and disappeared again. It was time to finish this. It was split second before they both running towards each other but this time there was a target in the very middle.

"Rasengan!" "Chidori!" The two shouts overlapped and the explosion levelled whatever part of the forest that was still standing around them. The shockwave shook the ground but after the dust cleared three figures were still standing. Both Naruto and Sasuke were breathing hard as they had put as much power as they could into their techniques but it seemed it was not enough. Danzo stood there seemingly unfazed as the remains of the wood wall that protected him lay all around him. Then something happened, something unexpected... Danzo screamed and grabbed his artificial arm as he dropped to his knees. Naruto's eyes widened when he saw that the arm was changing, growing... His shock only increased when Danzo ripped the arm off and threw it to the side where with amazing speed it continued to grow. Both Sasuke and Naruto watched as the arm got completely consumed and grew into a giant tree that towered meters over them.

Danzo fell onto his back and supported himself on one the roots that ripped the ground open around him. He knew he was done for, soon he would die. Die as a failure, a mere shadow to the third Hokage and all he ever wanted was peace for the village of Konoha he loved so much. A village he has sacrificed so much for. While it could be his time to go he would not go alone, he would not let the remaining sharingan to get into enemy hands and he would finish the job he started years ago when he ordered the massacre of the Uchiha clan. The old war-hawk Danzo Shimura still had one trick up his sleeve.

Naruto and Sasuke slowly approached the fallen leader of the root division. Naruto wanted to kill the man for a lot of reasons but knew that Sasuke had much more of a reason to kill him. They were not friends or enemies but still only a look between them and they both knew that it would be Sasuke who would deal the final blow. Naruto swung the cleaver over his shoulder and attached it onto its 'sheath' on his back while Sasuke pressed his chokuto to Danzo's chest, just over the heart. As he was about the push the blade in and finish the old man off something went wrong. Danzo smirked before coughing up more blood as a large seal spread over his chest. Naruto's eyes widened as he quickly scanned the seal array and realised its purpose. An ice kunai formed in his hand subconsciously and was half way through a throw as his other hand grabbed by a piece of the white shirt he was wearing and moved them out of the way as the reverse four symbol seal expanded and consumed a large radius of the area they just occupied.

When they landed Sasuke tore his shoulder out of Naruto's grasp and they both watched as the newly created tree crumpled and broke down after most of its trunk was sealed inside Danzo's body. Before Naruto could say anything Sasuke finished what he came here for.

"Amaterasu." The words flew on the wind before being overridden by the sound of the black flames consuming the corpse and any evidence left in the area. Sasuke started to walk away until Naruto's voice stopped him.

"Those eyes... that means that Itachi is dead..." Before he could even blink Sasuke had his sword pressed against his throat, rage filling his eyes as the Mangekyō spun around madly. Naruto though seemed to totally ignore the sharp blade that could end his life quite quickly and continued. "He was our informant within the Akatsuki, he is probably the only reason I managed to escape them for long enough to reach the level to fight them. I owed him a lot." The sharingan started to calm down and Sasuke slowly lowered the blade before turning and walking away. "What will you do now?" Sasuke only turned his head slightly as to acknowledge that he heard Naruto speak.

"Hn, that is none of your business dobe." Naruto shook his head and sighed as Sasuke disappeared into the forest. The anbu squad that appeared seconds later found a broken battlefield but there was no one there anymore.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"I hope the Hokage won't make us wait much longer..." Mei said in a bored tone as she tapped her fingers on the round table. Opposite her was Gaara of the Sand, the current Kazekage, looking as stoic as always. She sighed when he didn't respond yet again. She truly did not like being here, in the middle of the desert after years of living in the moist climate of Kirigakure. Looking behind her she saw that Ao stood there, relaxed, yet she knew he was ready to fight at the blink of an eye... since his other saw everything... The opening and closing of doors woke her back and she looked up just as Tsunade and her guards entered. Tsunade took off her hat and placed it on the table before sitting down. Shizune and Jiraiya standing near the wall behind her. Mei forced a smile and Tsunade copied the gesture but everyone could feel how tense the situation had become. Finally Gaara stood and broke the strained silence.

"Now that we are all here we can discuss the matters at hand. I only would like to remind you that you are in Suna territory and I will not accept any fighting. Do we all understand each other?" The redhead has changed a lot since the last time Jiraiya saw him during the chunnin exams. While outside he looked nearly the same just the way he spoke showed that he managed to break through the years of abuse and had fit right into the Kazekage position. Mei Nodded and the Kiri anbu standing to her right stepped forward and handed her two scrolls. She placed them on the table and pushed them towards Tsunade while Shizune did the same for Tsunade with a scroll of their own. Silence rules again as the two parties read through the contents and Tsunade's eyes narrowed when she got about halfway through the document.

"So you have any proof to your accusations?" Mei glared back but nodded.

"We brought in one of the bodies. It's completely untouched and you can check it over yourself." She sent an overly sweet smile towards the Hokage. Tsunade nodded and Shizune followed the Kiri anbu through the doors, flanked by two suna escorts. The room turned silent again for a few minutes before the group returned.

"She is saying the truth. Just as you expected it was Root's silencing cursed seal." Shizune reported silently to Tsunade but everyone in the room still heard it. Mei looked at Tsunade with a raised eyebrow as she heard the 'expected' part.

"That explains our part but what about the Kiri ninja that tried to infiltrate our village?" Tsunade asked as she leaned back in her chair. Mei looked over the pictures of the faces of the supposedly 'Kiri' ninja before she shook her head.

"I know every single ninja in my ranks. I can assure you that those did not come from my village." Tsunade fumed as she heard the Mizukage's calm proclamation.

"And I am supposed to just believe you like this? You have no proof at all." Mei scowled even further as she leaned forward and closer to Tsunade who returned the action.

"You will just have to trust me then. I am not about to give you access to our files so you can check. You will have to deal with it..." Ao stepped forward and was about to say something before Mei cut him off. "Shut up Ao, not now." Ao sighed and stepped back and watched as the two stubborn Kages continued their staring contest. They both were startled when the doors burst open and a white fox ran in and up to the Mizukage. Mei smiled and petted her on the head.

"Good to see you Yuki. Do you have something for me?" Yuki yipped and turned around until the backpack strapped to her back was easily accessible. Mei took out a sealed report scroll out of the satchel and watched as Yuki went over to the shaded part of the room before laying down on the floor. She opened the report and her shocked expression increased with every line she read. She closed up the scroll and handed it to the startled Tsunade. "Yuki is the fastest messenger we have. You will probably get the same report in an hour or so." Tsunade nodded and as she read the contents her expression mimicked Mei's from a minute before. When she finished everyone was looking at the two expectantly, waiting for an explanation. Tsunade leaned forward and dropped her head into her hands.

"How is that possible..." She lifted her head and in the calmest voice she could muster she continued. "Iwa was infiltrated this morning. A group of at least S-rank ninjas had assaulted the village in the search for their Jinchurikis..." Jiraiya stopped listening soon after that and quietly summoned a small toad as the others concentrated on Tsunade who continued to explain the contents of the report. There was one person who had to be here right now.

Naruto skidded to a stop as he jumped out of his ice kunai onto the gravel road beneath. It was just in time as a poof of smoke appeared before him, covering a tiny messenger toad. Naruto took it in his hand and brought it closer to his face. The toad bowed its head before relaying its message.

"Jiraiya-sama requires your presence Naruto-sama. It is an urgent matter. Is it fine to reverse summon you now?" Why would Jiraiya need him now? Apparently it was urgent enough that he couldn't wait until they met next. He sighed and nodded before waiting for the feeling of the summoning. When he opened his eyes he was staring at a room full of people he knew who looked very shocked to see him here, except for Jiraiya who was trying not to laugh and Yuki who ran up to him and started to rub her head against his hand. He turned his head to Jiraiya and glared at his formed teacher.

"What am I doing here Jiraiya? What was so urgent that you had to bring me here?" Jiraiya quickly sobered up from his giggles.

"Akatsuki attacked Iwa in search for the Jinchurikis. I think we can safely assume that they are two beasts forward... and we are a village less." Naruto's fists clenched and his fumed in anger at the thought of those bastards capturing two more of his kind. They were getting closer and closer to achieving whatever their goal was with every beast they captured.

"Naruto..." His eyes moved to the source of the voice who happened to be Tsunade. She was smiling at him that smile that reminded him of something... that is until she lunged at him. He took a step back as Jiraiya and Gaara's sand was barely enough to restrain her. "Come here you little shit! Just come closer and I will show you how much I missed you!" Tsunade shouted as she stretched her hands in vain as he was out of her reach. He was shocked at the fury in her eyes and took another step back. It took a few minute for Shizune and Jiraiya to calm her down, mostly thanks to the promise of allowing her to drink _a little bit_ of sake in her office. She huffed and straightened out her Kage robes before sitting down. Naruto moved towards Mei with a frown on his face, anyone would be angry if someone tried to attack you. Jiraiya coughed into his hand to try to bring everyone's attention back to business.

"Well now that that is out of the way we can move onto what we will do now. We have decided that since Kumo is the only village that isn't here while owning two Jinchurikis we need to send an envoy party to them. Convince them to help us fight the Akatsuki or at least make sure that they know what we are fighting against." He then looked Naruto straight in the eyes. "There are only three of you left and we cannot let the Akatsuki capture you or the other two." Naruto nodded and squared his shoulders.

"I'm going." He said with a voice that left no compromise ignoring the glares from the three women in the room. Jiraiya nodded again before Tsunade spoke out.

"Shizune will be heading out with you as Konoha's representation." They waited in silence for a second as Gaara thought of who to send. He called one of the guards over and whispered something to him before the guard left, probably to get Suna's representative.

"I will be sending my brother, Kankuro." Gaara stated as he looked between the two groups in front of him. Naruto stepped towards the doors and opened them before turning around to face the meeting.

"We will head out in an hour. Be ready at the east gate by that time." He then left the room and closed the doors behind him. Jiraiya frowned as he watched his student go. He could see that there was something heavy on his shoulders but he also knew that Naruto would not share with anyone. He wouldn't want to burden anyone else with his problems.

"Is...Is he always like this?" Shizune asked as she stared at the doors where Naruto stood a minute ago. Mei frowned and shook her head.

"No and I hope he figures out what is wrong with him, fast."

**To Be Continued...**


	16. Death and Disbelief

He knew that his two companions were staring at him when they thought he wasn't paying attention, they underestimated him since he learned to always pay attention. There was no time for stopping, questions or answers or deep talks. He had a bad feeling about what they would find in Kumo and what happened in Iwa did not ease his thoughts at all. What bothered him the most was the lack of apparent reason for the Akatsuki to push forward, full force, so suddenly. The conflict between the mist and the leaf gave them a window of opportunity for sure but why did they not stay quiet and instead blitzed right through the middle of a village... Something must have urged them on, but what?

Day turned to night and the trio settled for a break to catch some sleep before finishing the final part of the journey. The silence still reigned as no one dared speak in Naruto's heavy presence and under his distant stare. Shizune sneaked a glance at Kankuro before he shook his head discretely. After Naruto left the conference room the Kages all agreed that his problem would have to be fixed, one way or another, as in the end they all were able to fully agree on one thing. Naruto was too powerful and no matter what they thought about him personally, as family or friend, he would be too much of a danger to himself and everyone else if he ever broke. Helping Naruto was as much a duty to him as it was to the elemental nations. The two who disagreed with this plan of action were Ao and Jiraiya, they both knew that scheming behind his back would not end well and that the best thing they could do was leave him alone.

"If you want to say something then just get on with it." Naruto said from his spot under the tree and startled the two jonin. They looked at him and then at each other but neither said anything. "Nothing then? I'll take the first watch, you two go to sleep. We can talk after the mission is over." Kankuro nodded immediately and jumped into his sleeping bag. Shizune lingered for a second before doing the same. Naruto sighed before using a low level Jutsu to douse the fire. Finally he settled on a branch that gave him a good view of the surroundings and activated the transparency Jutsu to blend in. At least he would have some time to think things over...

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"Shut up Hidan! If you didn't need to pray before every fight the two tails would be already ours!" The masked member of the Zombie Duo shouted as he dodged a giant blue claw of demonic chakra. He wasn't in much danger of dying but it would only be a waste of time if he had to sew himself together. His annoying partner was in a similar situation right now.

"Don't tell me what to do motherfucker and if you ever say anything about Jashin-sama or my rituals then even your fucking hearts won't keep you alive!" Hidan shouted at Kakuzu who rolled his eyes and stopped another claw attack with a giant wall of water. The damn cat just didn't want to give up.

"I swear that I will kill you one day but for now could you hold that thing still for a few seconds?!" Hidan only grunted in response but he readied his triple bladed scythe and as soon as an opportunity arose he launched it in an arc and into the Two-tails neck before pulling down on the cable connecting the scythe back to him. The two-tails roared before it smashed head down into the ground. Kakuzu cracked his neck before launching his Jutsu. Surely the cat would tire out soon...

Naruto's head suddenly snapped to the north as his senses picked up on familiar feeling chakra. It wasn't as violent but he could recognise it anywhere. He stopped jumping from branch to branch before scaling the closest tree to the very top. His two, very confused, companions followed after him.

"One of the tailed beasts is fighting somewhere in that direction." Naruto informed them before they even asked the question. Their eyes widened in realisation. If the beast was fighting then it probably meant that Akatsuki was the one it was fighting. The thing was that even though Naruto could feel the chakra, they couldn't feel or see anything which meant that the fight was tens of miles away and out of their reach. "Grab onto my jacket, hold tight and try not to throw up." Naruto ordered and before they knew it all three were flashing in and out of view as an ice kunai flew at un-human speeds towards its destination.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"The further reports said that the Akatsuki moved north from Iwa before completely disappearing from all sensor fields." Jiraiya read out from a scroll before thanking the toad which brought it to him a couple minutes before. Tsunade sighed and leaned forward while trying to make sense of everything. They had no idea who the leader of the Akatsuki, who this time was surely involved in the attack, was and they could only guess at what he would do next.

"Should we send help to Iwa? Or at least a message asking for a conference between the Kages?" Asked Mei, seeing the strange looks she got she continued. "We may never have been on the best terms with Iwa and neither was the leaf but I feel we might need all the help we can get. I just have a bad feeling about all of this." Tsunade seemed to think hard for a few seconds before shaking her head.

"No, as true as that may be they wouldn't accept help. There's too much bad blood between Iwa and Konoha..." Tsunade didn't finish but they all knew. It was for a good reason that the two villages hated each other. All eyes focused on the sage as he stood up from his spot and walked over to where Yuki was sleeping. He tightened a scroll he just wrote to her backpack before straightening up and facing the rest of the room.

"We should get ready and gather our forces, fortify the villages... get ready for a full on war." Gaara looked as calm as ever despite Jiraiya's words but on the inside he was as disturbed as all the others in the room. The Akatsuki had managed to kidnap him from his own village and now ran through Iwa and probably captured the two of their hosts.

Who was to say that they wouldn't attack any of the other villages?

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Hidan set his feet against the ground and pulled on his scythe. The two tailed cat roared as the blades cut into the chakra flesh. The beast, even though in pain, did not let up and seemed to only get madder. The flames on its blue skin flared up as it reared up. Hidan tried his best but the beast was stronger and as if on a spring the cable pulled back and threw him up into the air and against the ground. Kakuzu grit his teeth in anger, this was taking too long already.

"...False Darkness!" Hidan looked back as a concentrated beam of energy shot from where his partner was standing. The Jutsu took the beast off guard and cleaved right through its chest. The beast stumbled for a few seconds before falling down on the spot. Hidan took the opportunity to stand up and dust himself off.

"Fucking finally, we have been fighting this thing for hours..." Hidan snarled and Kakuzu nodded. He cracked his shoulder back into place and watched as the chakra slowly dissipated from the flaming cat until it revealed a blond haired woman. Just as Kakuzu was about to walk forward to pick her up he heard someone land on the ground behind them. As he turned around he caught a glimpse of Hidan's smirk. "Fuck yeah! Jashin-sama will be delighted with this sacrifice!"

Both Shizune and Kankuro stumbled forward when they landed a couple hundred meters from the fight. Kankuro steadied himself under a tree and covered his mouth with his hand to stop himself from showing off his breakfast.

"Wha- What the hell was that!?" Kankuro whispered with a glare directed at Naruto who was shaking with silent laughter. It was then that the foul chakra nearly completely disappeared and that could mean one of two things. The host has won and released the chakra cloak or the Akatsuki won... Naruto's face was set, determination whirling behind the blue eyes and his teammates mirrored his actions.

Naruto's eyes narrowed as he registered the two cloaked figures and the unmoving body. His gaze crossed paths with the Akatsuki holding a scythe and something about that smirk set him off.

"Keep the one on the right busy; do not let them get away with the body." Kankuro and Shizune nodded and wasted no time in moving in towards their target whose hands were already making handsigns. Naruto meanwhile has already activated his first stage cloak and an ice kunai in hand.

Hidan's smile widened even more when the blonde appeared behind him and tried to slash him with a kunai. It didn't work though as his control with the scythe was that mastered over years and he had no problem deflecting attacks with it. He turned on the spot and slashed in a wide arc but missed completely as his opponent has 'teleported' out of the way again.

Naruto growled again as he felt more chakra entered his system. There was no point in wasting time with slowly powering up. The faster he won his fight he would be able to move to move in to help his teammates who currently were doing well enough against the other Akatsuki. The appearance of a chakra tail behind him set off his opponent who apparently didn't know he was a host.

"Kakuzu! This fucker is a host! What are we supposed to do with him?!" Hidan barely finished as a blue ball of chakra smashed into the ground where he stood a second before.

"I'll deal with these ones soon and then we can take care of him, I'm sure leader will be happy if we bring back two beasts instead of one..." Kakuzu shouted back as he blocked volleys of senbon with a wall of water.

Naruto took the small opportunity to release his mist in a small area around his fight, while he could fight perfectly inside it he knew that neither Shizune nor Kankuro were able to see inside it. Moving silently he gripped his sword in a two handed grip and wasting no time slashed in a horizontal cut. He could feel blood splash against his face and could hear the head drop to the floor. Retreating the mist he saw the unmoving body and everything would have been fine if not for the fact that the head looked perfectly alive...

"You motherfucker! Kakuzu! Fix me right now so I can cut this bitch into tiny pieces!" Naruto couldn't hear the response of the other Akatsuki but took a step back when the ground rumbled lightly and a second later black like strings shot out of the earth around Hidan's body and crawled all over his decapitated head. Naruto watched in amazement as the Akatsuki's head was reattached to his body. Hidan looked just fine despite the fatal injury he endured just a few seconds ago. He cracked his neck in a mocking gesture and released a cackling mad laugh. "We are only just getting started you little shit."

Naruto ground his teeth. If cutting his head off didn't work then what would? The situation with Kakuzu was not going well either as he seemed to be able to counter anything Shizune or Kankuro threw at him. The grip on his sword tightened and he dashed forward, a cloud of mist surrounding him at all times. Sparks flew as the two bladed weapons clashed together. Naruto immediately kicked the sword back up and followed up with a strike aimed at Hidan's arm. If he wouldn't die from losing a head then he probably wouldn't die from most other cuts but if he could get rid of that scythe...

Hidan was having the time of his life. Finding strong opponents was hard nowadays, especially when you were immortal. Too bad that he would not be able to sacrifice the blonde to Jashin-sama; he would have to pray for forgiveness later... maybe slaughter a small town...

The shielding atop of the puppet named salamander blocked another Jutsu fired off by Kakuzu. Nothing seemed to have any effect on the Akatsuki. When scorpion managed to stab him in the stomach the strange black threads sewed the wound back together in seconds. Throwing senbon was useless and any sort of poison apparently had no effect. They would figure out how to kill him fast or they would die themselves.

Naruto's strikes were getting more frantic and even though he managed to sneak a cut her and there it only spurred on the pain loving Akatsuki. Strike after strike from the scythe was deflected by either the sword or ice that materialised in small shards from the mist surrounding Naruto like an ultimate defence. Hidan jumped back and whipped his scythe around as a final strike towards Naruto. The attack was unexpected as Naruto had no idea that the cable was able to extend so far or that it was even possible to control the scythe at such a long range. That was when Hidan drew blood.

Naruto watched as Hidan's grin grew more maniacal than before. The Akatsuki brought his scythe to him and licked off the couple drops of Naruto's blood and seemed to savour the salty taste similarly to how an experienced wine connoisseur tasted a drink. Before Naruto thought to move back in and continue his attacks Hidan drew a strange symbol on the ground. A circle big enough for him to stand in and a triangle within the circle. That is when things turned weird. Hidan started to laugh, crazier than ever before, as his skin started to turn black with markings resembling bones all over his body. When their eyes met Naruto started to move towards his opponent but before he could reach him Hidan stabbed himself in the stomach with a retractable spear he took out from under his cloak.

Naruto's eyes widened when he felt the same wound on his own body. He stumbled forward and fell to one knee while clutching his new wound.

"Hahahaha! You are at my and Jashin-sama's mercy now!" He seemed to take a second to collect himself and retracted the spear before looking back at Naruto. He grinned at Naruto's glaring eyes and shoved the spear right into his left lung. A moment later Naruto bent over even farther and with a hard breath coughed up blood. "Hurts, doesn't it?" Naruto's eyes shot up to meet Hidan's again. "It's a nice way to understand each other, isn't it? And the pain is so fucking delightful..." Naruto's shoulders were shaking with anger; he couldn't take it anymore and started to stand up. Hidan laughed again when he that and stabbed himself in the leg. Naruto propped himself up on his sword to stop himself from falling as his leg started to feel limp. He wanted to rip that smug expression from that bastards face. It was then that he heard a huge explosion and strangled cry. He caught the sight of giant flames in the corner of his eye. Hidan licked his lips as he looked on towards the destruction his partner wrought. "Hm, Kakuzu will want to collect the bounties for those two after we are done here. You should say goodbye to that whore and that other fucker fast I'd think."

It was after those words that something broke in Naruto. One tail quickly changed into three and his wounds stitched up enough for him to be able to walk again towards Hidan. The Akatsuki lost his smirk and used the spear to inflict multiple wounds on his legs to stop the jinchuriki in front of him but it only slowed him down. Naruto at this point was laying on the ground, the chakra tails slowly swishing on the ground. Then the fourth tail appeared.

It was as if a dam was broken and the foul chakra flooded his system. When he used it before, it was filtered in some way which gave it the white colour and so did not affect him as much but now that was all gone. This chakra was full of anger and malice and as more and more travelled under his skin it started to burn like acid. When his skin got torn off Naruto started to scream.

Hidan would have laughed and took pleasure in the painful screams if not for the fact that the fact that the blonde he was torturing was no longer there. In a blink of an eye he found himself eye to eye with a bloodthirsty chakra beast at least three times his size. He didn't get to scream himself as the blood red jaws opened to reveal a black abyss and closed in on top of him.

Kakuzu could only look on as his partner was bit in half, the top half quickly consumed by the fox like beast. He watched as the lifeless bottom part of his partner's body dropped to the knees and fell forward, the only thought in his head right now was that he probably would not be able to sew Hidan back together after this.

The beast stopped before releasing a deafening roar into the air. Its eyes then settled on the remaining Akatsuki member but instead of going straight after him it opened its jaws and formed a black ball of chakra before swallowing it. Kakuzu's green eyes met with the glowing white ones of the four tailed fox as the beast fired a beam of chakra straight at him. It was then that he felt something pull him underground. The blast shockwave shook the ground for miles around the impact zone.

When Kakuzu emerged from the ground on the other side of the field, a somewhat safe distance from the rampaging beast, he finally saw that it was Zetsu who saved him from a quick death. Before he could ask on what where their further orders another presence revealed itself.

"So it seems that someone was able to finally kill him." The blue haired woman said as she looked on towards the beast which was now devouring the remains of Hidan's body.

"Konan-san, should we attempt to capture the beast now or should we leave now?" Konan kept her eyes locked on the beast standing a few hundred meters from her and shook her head.

"No. Zetsu has already secured the two tails. We lost another member today so the sealing will take even longer now. Even with the three of us we would be hard pressed to capture the nine tails now as reinforcements from Kumo will be arriving soon." Konan finished and turned to Zetsu.

"What about the other two..."

"No, we do not have time to waste Kakuzu and neither I nor the leader cares about your bounties." Kakuzu's fist clenched when he thought about losing another two bounties but he stayed quiet, even he could not match up to the leader's power.

Taking one last look at the blood red chakra beast Konan turned around and disappeared in a flutter of thousands of paper sheets flying with the wind. The other two Akatsuki followed soon after.

Naruto's breathing was uneven and more strained than ever. He jumped again and pressed himself again one of the huge metal bars as a tail swiped into the ground just in front of him. Taking the chance he jumped onto it and started running up and along it as the Kyuubi tried to shake him off.

"Stop it Kyuubi! Cut off the chakra! What do you think this will accomplish!?" Naruto shouted before making a long jump after the beast threw itself at a wall in an attempt to smash him as if he was merely a flea.

"As if you had to ask that question, you know what I want human. I was waiting a long time for this chance!" The Kyuubi roared back. That was when Naruto started getting close to his head. Using both hands he started charging a rasengan but it didn't stop there. A clone appeared on his side and together they poured more chakra into the rasengan which grew many times its normal size. One of Kyuubi's claws swiped at Naruto and managed to destroy his clone but fortunately he was close enough to his target. When the giant rasengan smashed into the Kyuubi a huge shockwave exploded and blew Naruto forward and towards the gate while the Fox was smashed into the ground below. The explosion managed to kick up a cloud of dust.

Naruto shakily stood up when he felt a build up of chakra. He couldn't see what the Kyuubi was about to do but he had a feeling. Just at the last second he focused on pulling the chakra from all around him. This was his realm and his chakra was everywhere around him. It had to work. Putting his hands forward he focused on creating Ice chakra and just as the beast ball was about to hit him it was consumed by a giant wall of ice. The more power the Kyuubi poured into the attack the thicker the ice grew, slowly creeping along the beam of chakra. At this point the Kyuubi was breathing as hard as Naruto but when he saw the blonde ran up the ice and stand in front of him, at his eye level, he knew that the fight was over.

"You know that I saw everything... and all this time I trusted you when everyone else told me not to! Did I ever take anything from you? Did I ever steal your power? I never broke my side of the deal!" The Kyuubi stayed silent and only continued to stare into Naruto's eyes. Finally he released a large breath through his nose that nearly made Naruto stumble back. Naruto could feel the foul chakra retract from his body. Before he could say anything the fox pushed him out of his mindscape. As he came back to consciousness he heard the fox's words echo in his head.

'_This is not over Naruto.'_

_-'... and it really wasn't over, it was merely a beginning. A precursor of what was to come. I still do not fully understand everything but I understand enough to know why things went the way they did back then. I finally understand what all those dreams and cryptic messages meant...'_

When he opened his eyes he wasn't really that surprised to see at least five members of Kumogakure anbu standing over him, pointing their ninjatos at his vitals. Taking a quick glance to his side he saw that Shizune and Kankuro were laying on the ground nearby with another five kumo-nins standing guard over them. At least his teammates seemed to be still alive. Looking back at the ninja standing over him he found the one that looked like he could be the leader of the group.

"In my left breast pocket there is a scroll that should clear up all this." Naruto said while motioning around him with his chin. The anbu hesitated for a second before reaching in and taking the scroll in question. He retreated to the back and out of view but a few minutes later the weapons were removed and Naruto was roughly pulled upright.

"This explains why you are here but it doesn't explain what happened here and our missing jonin." The Anbu spoke roughly from behind his mask, his voice laced with distrust. Naruto let nothing show on his face as he spoke.

"I think that your Kage should hear it first." The two stared at each other for a moment before the anbu nodded sharply. He motioned to the other group with his hand and the anbu bound Shizune and Kankuro before throwing them over their shoulders. Soon they were moving towards the mountains in the east, Naruto surrounded by the bulk of the anbu as his two teammates were carried unconscious in the back of the group.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"At least they didn't close me in a cell..." Naruto said to himself as he moved his gaze from the window to the still forms of his two teammates. They have been brought to Kumogakure hours ago and they all were placed in the hospital under anbu supervision while an appointment was being made with the Raikage. He himself was perfectly fine except for the slightly burned clothes. Shizune and Kankuro were not in danger of dying but would still be unconscious at least for another day.

Despite the unnerving sound of the IV drip Naruto slowly he lowered himself back onto the bed he was given and tried going back to sleep. As soon as a new set of images, that plagued his dreams for months, appeared he knew that he wouldn't get much actual sleep.

**To Be Continued...**


	17. Long road to ruin

"Father!" The man stopped writing as a shout coming from behind him broke the serene atmosphere that accompanied him outside. It was always a different place or a different reason but he already knew that the end of this conversation would be similar to those before.

"Yes? I assume that your brother is back from your mission as well." His writing abandoned the man turned around as he spoke. His son was standing in the doorways of their house. His clothes were ragged and dirty, clearly he came here as soon as he arrived, and his expression confirmed the sour mood his voice conveyed at first.

The young man's fists clenched just ever so slightly at the mention of his brother, the source of nearly all his problems, and the seeming lack of concern for himself from his own father.

"Yes he is..."

"And how did it go? Any progress in the north?" The older man asked as he turned back to his writing. He did not see the frustration in his son's eyes.

"Yes..."

"Then those are good news, are they not?" By now the cheery mood of his father had been enough. He couldn't stop the deep growl from escaping his throat as he took a couple of steps forward. He also couldn't stop his voice from rising far beyond what he was taught as a child.

"No they are not! Can't you see that this is not solving any problems at all?!" He took his father's silence and lack of any other response as a no. "They only listen because it is you that sent us and you that will 'lead' them! Has your goal blinded you so much that you can't see that they do not care about peace..."

"Quiet!" It was a rare sight to see the older man angry, it was an emotion left for special occasions that required the power contained within anger and hate. This time though the son was not fazed by it, his father would finally hear what he had to say.

"No, I will not step down! My brother inherited the blind faith that you poses but I did not! I see people and the world for what they really are and I'm sure that you do as well... We both know that what you want is not possible within our lifetimes and it will be impossible if you continue with my brother's plan!" His words were met with silence until the father stood up and without a word walked away into the gardens, leaving his son on his own.

The young man could only watch as his own father walked away from him, leaving him 'victorious' in their argument yet not feeling like he won anything. Instead he felt as if he just lost everything. He expected to feel many things like sorrow, pain or even anger yet it was pure hate that shone in his onyx eyes. Hate of his family, of their weakness, of their inability to act. Despite the eyes that gave them their great power they could not, would not see, the truth.

Naruto's eyes snapped open but his breath remained steady. The dream was still vivid like a recent memory but without context it meant as much as all the others did. The room was still well lit by the sunlight coming through the window which meant that he either slept through the night or only for an hour or so. The second option was more probable.

Pushing himself up, he sat on the bed and looked around. His teammates were still out and other than them there was no soul to be seen. Anbu were probably stationed outside the window and the doors but they were always a stealthy bunch. Hopefully the Raikage would send for him soon, the faster he finished the faster he could go back and have Jiraiya check the seal for him but for now he could do nothing but wait.

It was for the second time the same day that he was woken up in a slightly unpleasant way. This time though it was an anbu shaking him awake.

"Get up and get yourself ready. The Raikage will see you in ten minutes." He took a few steps back as Naruto got off the bed and started to pick up his things. "Your escort will be waiting for you outside the door." He waited until Naruto confirmed that he heard and left as soon as he did. Naruto sighed as he threw his jacket on, it was now or never, in the end it was only the future of the alliance that rested on his shoulders right now...

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"The sealing is proceeding as expected, it is slower but there should be no problems." The blue haired Akatsuki said as she stopped in front of the sitting redheaded boy.

"That's good Konan. The nine tails is becoming more of a problem though. We will have to do something soon." He coughed and choked as he finished speaking, as if the action of talking was taking all of his energy. He could see the concern in his friend's eyes but she did not move from her spot, she knew he wanted no help and no pity despite the state his body was in. "Perhaps we should strike at the heart of our problem, get rid of the nine tails and one of the villages at once..."

Neither saw nor heard what was less than a shadow, move through the floor. Miles away the same shadow sprung out from the ground revealing the plant like Akatsuki spy, Zetsu. In front of him were his master and another member of the Akatsuki. A masked man named Tobi.

"Whether they succeed or fail in capturing the nine tails it does not matter. May I assume that you have located the other boy which holds Kyuubi's chakra?" The single eye which could be seen from under the mask finally focusing on Zetsu, casting an inquisitive look that could make most men talk but Zetsu only smiled in return as if it was a normal occurrence. The smile still on his face, Zetsu nodded and waited. "Good. It won't be long until we can press on with our plans. I have waited so long for this moment to come, so long..."

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Silence again. This was really getting annoying. No one trusted each other these days, no one wanted to make the first move or start talking first. The look the Raikage was giving him was doing no good either, it looked like in his eyes he was already guilty of whatever crime the massive man thought to accuse him of.

"I should kill you myself for entering the land of lightning without my word and for your, yet unknown, part in the disappearance of one of our best jonin but..." Here the Raikage crossed his arms and leaned back with that strange expression on his face. It was clearly meant to intimidate and despite everything a small part of him shouted that it was working. "...my anbu says that you have business with us, that you are representing three of the major villages." It was then that the Raikage started laughing; a deep and hearty laugh that completely mismatched the mood surrounding the whole situation. "I never thought that I would live to see the day that Konoha, Suna and Kiri work together. Ha! Some of the previous Kages are turning in their graves now." Naruto by now had enough of the idle talk, neither of them had time for any of this.

"I assume that you've read the scroll I was supposed to deliver and so know why I am here! The alliance needs your and Kumo's support." The joking grin slowly slid off the Raikage's face and it finally showed the reason for why he was a Kage other than what was obviously unimaginable great strength. He laughed as if he had heard a great joke.

"The 'alliance' may need our support but we do not need or want anything from them! This Akatsuki may be your problem but it is nothing to us." Naruto could only stare at the man in front of him as he tried to reason with himself to not attack him right now. Out of all the things he had expected to hear from the Raikage, this was not one of them.

"Not a problem?! Your jinchuriki was taken right from under your nose and there are only two others left in all of elemental nations! There isn't much left of Iwa after they were done with it, do not think they won't siege Kumo in search of the eight tails..." Naruto spat out as he stalked closer to the seething Kage. The Raikage sprung from his seat like an animal and in a second was face to face with Naruto.

"Was that a threat?" Naruto didn't flinch back from the stare and got even closer despite the inner voice warning him from provoking a Kage.

"No. Merely a warning." He could see the muscles tighten under the Raikage's skin. He was ready to strike but apparently had held himself back. There were tales of the man's short and very aggressive temper and this made them that much more believable.

"Get out. Leave as soon as your team is ready and don't come back unless you are looking for death." Naruto turned on his heel and stalked out of the room as soon the Raikage finished talking, pushing past the ninja who were listening in under the doors. As soon as the doors closed behind Naruto a shadow dropped down onto the floor behind the Raikage.

"The nine tails is right you know; you should listen to him bro." The Kage's only answer was a low grunt as he walked around and back to his desk.

"You will do what you want anyway, B. I can't stop you." B grinned and walked up to his brother with his fist raised in the air and waited until his brother bumped his fist back. "Just be careful brother."

Shizune and Kankuro were still asleep when Naruto came back. It must have been the heavy breathing or the menacing aura that radiated from all around him that had woken up the other sannin apprentice.

Shizune slowly stirred on the bed and forced her eyes to open, she was too tired to even let out a sound while doing so. The first thing she noticed were the painfully white walls of the room, the needle painfully stuck in the wrong place in her arm and finally Naruto sitting in a chair; looking outside and completely ignoring everything else. If he knew that she had woken up he didn't acknowledge it at all, in some way she felt as if she could finally succeed in catching him off-guard. Shizune turned her head on the pillow to let her look without straining her neck and was disappointment when the small movement had garnered his attention.

After coming into the room Naruto plopped down into the first chair he saw. He had failed in getting help without even being given a chance to try. The Raikage was pretty clear in showing that Kumo would not help no matter what. He had a feeling that they were walking away free and alive only because they had tried to save the two tails but it was still for naught. Now he would have to go back to Mei, Tsunade, Gaara and all the others and tell them that there would be no help coming. How could he face them now...

He was just tired.

He sat back in the chair and ran a hand through his hair. Things weren't that bad though, the enemy did not have an army at their disposal. Now that would have been real bad.

Slowly the anger and confusion and all the other emotions that troubled his mind left as the clouds outside passed by. In a way it was similar to the sound quiet sounds of flowing water in Kiri. It had the same calming effect. It was thanks to that calming aura and the strange quietness in his head that Naruto was finally able to notice the slow and quiet shuffling coming from the bed to his left. He turned his head, not moving any other part of his body, and his eyes met with Shizune's. Nearly immediately he released a sigh and broke the eye contact as he stood up. He could feel her eyes following his every move as he brought the chair around and close to her bed before sitting back down.

"How are you feeling?" For a second she looked like she wasn't going to answer and instead was going to return the question but at the last moment decided against it.

"Fine."

"Just fine?" He sighed and rubbed his face when all he got back was a 'mhm' and the constant staring was starting to unnerve him. After a moment of silence Shizune finally decided to speak.

"What about you?" Naruto realised that his eyes moved to her face a bit too fast and as a ninja that was enough of a sign for Shizune.

"What about me? You are the one stuck in bed." He looked towards the IV to prove his point and in turn she rolled her neck and shoulders before pushing herself up into a sitting position before going back to staring at him. After a few minutes of silence the air was filled with Kankuro's low snoring and Naruto couldn't help but chuckle at the interruption of their 'conversation'. It was then that she realised that Naruto would not crack, at least not this way.

"When we were rescuing Gaara, I felt you use its chakra and I felt it again when we were fighting those freaks... then something changed... what happened Naruto?" She thought that he would shy away from her eyes but it was the exact opposite.

"You saw?" She shook her head lightly. She didn't see much between that final explosion and the moment when she blacked out. "I had to defeat him and I went a bit too far but everything's under control." He knew that she did not fully believe him but she let it go.

"You know you can trust us Naruto, right?" He looked down for a second before meeting her eyes again, this time with a smile.

"Yeah, I know."

Soon enough Kankuro woke up and after a final medical check Naruto explained the situation at hand. After what they went through they were turned away without a second thought. Now as they stood outside the gates to Kumogakure they couldn't help but think of just how bad things would get before something finally worked out.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Some of the hooded figures were breathing loudly and with obvious strain but they did not dare to move away from the giant statue. With so many members lost they could not waste time in sealing their latest prey. Thankfully it was only the two tails and so sealing it with the others had taken two days. The light linking the unconscious woman to the mouth of the statue vanished and the figures disappeared with it, the large cave going completely silent.

Miles away the blue haired Akatsuki, Konan, slowly approached her long time friend. The concern in her eyes clearly visible and in such contrast to her usual appearance. The redhead was having a hard time breathing, releasing lung tearing coughs every few seconds. The worst part was that there was nothing she could do and even if she could then he probably would not let her do it. Why couldn't the world see that all he wanted was peace, that all they had to do was bow down to their god?

"Anything you need Konan?" His voice was weak and tired but she could hear it clearly.

"What will be our next move?" He lifted his head as to meet her eyes. That moment they both knew, he wouldn't last much longer and his next move could perhaps be his last, not thanks to the enemy but because of the illness that has been killing him for years.

"Konoha, we will get our peace and it should draw the nine tails out into our hands while the others are gathered in Suna."

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

The single eye met the pair just opposite him. All three sharingan spinning wildly as if processing the situation, calculating every move that the other one could take and how to counteract it.

"I can give you what you want; the revenge that you seek so much, the redemption that you think you do not deserve! All I want is for you to join us. You might even get to fight that blonde mist-nin who was your team mate years ago." Sasuke listened to the masked man who called himself Tobi and part of him kept shouting at him to accept. It was all true, he wanted revenge because killing Danzo did not calm it completely, he did not think he deserved redemption because he would never forgive himself for killing his brother and Naruto... That was a fight they both were working for all those years. In a way they understood each other better than anyone else did just because of that promise. The other part told him that he could achieve all those things himself; it told him to not trust this man despite the fact that he owned a Sharingan that wasn't stolen.

"No." In the end why would he decide to work for him when he managed to escape from Orochimaru? Tobi, though, did not seem surprised. If anything he looked as if he was expecting the answer.

"Hmh, now you say so but we will see. Soon you will have to make your choice but it seems it is not the time yet." As soon as he was finished he disappeared into thin air. Now even Sasuke's Sharingan managing to see how he did so. Sasuke shuffled on the spot and turned towards his destination again. He had some research to do, all he could do now was try to get to the bottom of all of this and getting to the Uchiha hideouts was the first thing that came to his mind. Fixing his sword he started to walk forward, he had all the time in the world right now.

"I thought that the Uchiha was vital to your plan... But now he is gone and doesn't look like he will come back." Tobi didn't even bother to look at the plant Akatsuki and continued walking forward. His steps echoed across the empty cave, the destination could be seen lightly illuminated couple hundred meters from here.

"He will come around. Now it is only a matter of time before everything falls into place. We just have to wait..." Tobi finished as he stopped walking, Zetsu catching up to his side a moment later. They both were now looking at something that would win the upcoming war for them, it just needed a bit more time and then there would be peace.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"What are you doing Jiraiya?" Tsunade asked as the sage continued to draw a pretty large seal on the ground. He had been preparing and drawing it for the past two hours. Yuki was laying down not far away from them and she too was eagerly watching Jiraiya at work. The Kage growled when the toad sage didn't answer her question and was about to ask more aggressively when Jiraiya leaned back with a smile. Apparently he was finished with whatever he was doing. "So will you finally tell me what you are doing?"

"The Uzumakis talent in sealing techniques must truly run in their blood, because Naruto through self teaching had reached levels that anyone outside the Uzumaki clan except a few could only dream of achieving..." Tsunade was quite confused by his words as she could not really connect them to her question. The smirk on his face only infuriated her harder. "He is truly his father's son you know. I only gave him one of Minato's three pronged Kunais and he managed to figure out how the seals on them worked within months. So to answer your question this is a summoning seal."

"Wait, you mean Naruto can use the flying thunder god?!" Jiraiya couldn't help but chuckle at her surprised voice.

"Not really. He knows how it works but he never bothered to make it work for him. His ice abilities grant him a similar ability that works better for him. What he did instead was a seal that could transport objects and people over long distances using the same base as Minato's technique and the summoning Jutsu we use with our..." He was stopped when Tsunade held up her hands in defeat.

"Don't bother since I will not understand it anyway... So why are you doing it?" Her question was answered when Yuki walked onto the seal and sat down in the very centre.

"All the new Intel and new orders from me and the Mizukage are with Yuki. I'm sure she also misses Naruto, after all they haven't done a mission together in over three months." Tsunade nodded and was now standing silently, waiting for the show to start.

Jiraiya went through a quick series of seals before slamming both his hands onto the ground. His fingers connecting certain paths of the seal together. The ink seemed to come alive and with a last yip the white fox was gone, only a faint trail of light left behind her.

The trio had settled down for a few hours just on the edge of the Land of Lightning. Kankuro and Shizune were still tired from the wounds they endured during their fight with the Akatsuki and they all agreed that it was more important for them to be at the best condition they could possibly be than to arrive back a few hours earlier. After setting up a small fire they sat down and ate whatever they had left of their provisions. Just before they were about to head to sleep Naruto stood up and walked a few meters away before standing still. Kankuro was about to ask what he was doing when a blur of light slammed into Naruto, followed by a crackling thunder sound. Shizune dropped her food and jumped to her feet, ready to fight, only to realize that Naruto was holding Yuki who was wildly licking his face.

She couldn't help but smile as both Naruto and Kankuro both started laughing. It seemed that their walk back would be slightly more amusing, perhaps they could forget about Kumo even if for a moment.

The six cloaked figures stood atop a cliff face, the shadow of a village hidden behind the many trees and bushes. Even though the six were separate, they still walked one path. Tomorrow that path would lead them to their revenge.

**To Be Continued...**


	18. Follow the tears

"Izumo... do you think we could leave for lunch early today..." The black haired chunnin muttered while leaning back in his chair. Izumo did not bother with an answer and instead laid his head down on the desk in front of him. Some days guard duty on the gates was the most boring job in all of Konoha. He knew that he should be keeping an eye on Kotetsu yet the idea of just closing his eyes for a few seconds... maybe minutes did not seem that bad. Even his immature partner could deal with the job alone for a few minutes. Slowly his eyes closed as the normally more mature and responsible of the duo dozed off on the job.

After what seemed like only a moment earlier Izumo felt something, or someone, shake him violently. Moving his hands violently in the general direction of the offender he tried to stop it but the shaking only got worse. In the end his eyes cracked slightly open when he heard a muffled voice coming from above him.

"Come on Izumo! Wake up! I can't do this alone!" Kotetsu's cries finally broke through and Izumo's eyes snapped open and he shot up from his chair ready for any unwanted visitors. What he found instead was a sight that would have scared any man in the elemental nations; an angry Tsunade looking him straight into the eyes. His eyes widened even more and he took a staggered step back while Izumo's hand, subconsciously, drifted down to protect what was most precious to him.

"T-Tsunade-sama!" The fifth Hokage growled while her eyebrow twitched lightly.

"We are at war; whether it is with another village or with a singular foe, it should not make a difference to your duties which include staying awake!" She raised her hand to massage out a headache but the action caused the two chunnin to take a cautious step back. She closed her eyes and tried to calm herself down. "You will not get punished. You have done a good job up to this point and we can't spare any more ninja to guard duties but remember that if this happens again..." The chunnin duo gulped as she closed her fist tightly in the air and made a slashing motion with her other hand before walking away.

It took a few seconds before Kotetsu dropped down into his seat with a shudder. He sighed and was about to make sure that the Hokage was gone when Izumo slapped him hard on the back of the head.

"Next time wake me up if I fall asleep!"

"Not my fault, you are supposed to be the responsible one... when did she get here anyway?"

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"We should be about twelve hours from Konoha by now." Naruto said as the group continued to move between the trees. Yuki seemed to be full of energy as she swirled in between the branches and the ninja surrounding her. Shizune laughed softly when the wet nose tickled her arm while Kankuro was trying to divide his attention between picking white fur from his clothes and making sure he was going in the right direction."We can rest for a few hours before night falls and we should arrive tomorrow morning."

Shizune and Kankuro both nodded. They have been travelling for some time, trying to get back to Konoha in a good time as the orders delivered by Yuki told them so.

"Yuki arrived from Suna didn't she?" Shizune asked while falling in step right beside Naruto. The blonde gave her a short nod. "But the orders said that they would be waiting for us. How could they get there faster than we will?" Kankuro left the fur on his jacket to listen in, he was quite curious himself. Naruto turned his head slightly and smirked before giving his answer.

"They are travelling through Mount Myōboku." Shizune knew the name. She had heard of it many times in stories from both Jiraiya and Tsunade and with the way the white haired sannin had many times appeared out of nowhere within the village she had suspected that there was a direct connection to it from some place out there. For that connection to start at the home of the toads made perfect sense.

"Mount what?" Nearly shouted Kankuro as he sped up to catch up with the other two.

"Mount Myōboku, it's the home of the toads and no, I can't tell you anything else, sorry." The grin on his face showed that he wasn't sorry at all but no one said anything. He was smiling and even making small jokes. That was much better than the silent and angry Naruto they saw before.

_-'...even now I wonder if perhaps I could have saved them. I think about every action I took days before it all started and in the end I always fail and it hurts to see those that are left, I already dealt with all my broken promises but I do not think I will ever be able to deal with the guilt... I worry that after all this time it is not my nindo or beliefs that push me forward but the guilt I feel over all my failures...'_

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

The night was slowly setting over the village of Konohagakure. The streets slowly emptied as the civilians left for their homes after closing their businesses and the only ones who remained were ninja who patrolled the now empty village. It was a time of war and while the fifth Hokage did not instil martial law, like Kirigakure did, everyone knew that leaving after dark was not wise.

The village, as by name, was hidden in the leaves but this night it was not the only thing hidden in the forests of fire country. A group of six cloaked figures stepped out of the shadows and dropped onto the dirt road leading to the main village gate. They completely ignored the first and the second call to stop and when the Konoha ninja ran in with their kunai drawn it only took one gesture from the leader of the group.

"Shinra Tensei!"

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Tsunade's pen stopped when a light tremor shook her office. She took a quick look outside and found nothing to be out of order yet she still had a bad feeling; that was why she had made a random check on most defences and services in Konoha this day. It was also the reason why she was forced to carry out all the paperwork for the day at this ungodly hour. At least she had a bottle to keep her company...

'_Ha! In your face Shizune. You never listened when I told you that I could work and drink at the same time...'_ The fifth laughed and finished another cup before she tried to continue writing. A second later when she tried to pour herself another cup she was interrupted again but this time it wasn't a tremor, instead it was one of her anbu.

"Lady Hokage. The Akatsuki are inside the village." Her eyes widened slightly and she grabbed her coat just as the anbu disappeared. A minute later she was standing outside, just in time to witness what looked to be a giant dog rampage across the north end of the village. Still frozen in shock she saw a toad of comparable size appear out of thin air and wrestle the dog into the ground with a single hit. It seemed that the pervert was already doing his job. She would not let him outdo her; after all it was her task to protect those people.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Her eyes snapped open as something nearby moved and rustled the forest bed. Her hand was on the hidden kunai immediately. On pure instinct she jumped out of the sleeping bag, ready to strike, but found nothing. Looking up at the spot where Kankuro had replaced her she found him looking at her as if she was mad. She quickly shook her head and took another look around but found nothing. Just before sleep could overtake her again the noises came back. This time she only turned around and easily found the source.

'_Naruto...'_

He was turning and moaning, things she had seen many times when she worked at the hospital. She knew he was plagued by nightmares or at least dreams he could not deal with. Before she knew it she was right beside him, slowly shaking him and trying to get him awake.

"Naruto... Wake up..."

"Please..."

Finally her whispers seemed to have broken through as Naruto awoke with what looked like a silent scream. His eyes, at first wide with panic, quickly returned to normal and his mouth closed shut. A moment later he turned confused.

"Shizune? Why did you wake me up?" Shizune stared at the blonde as if he was mad. Did he really not know? Being a Shinobi required many skills and being to hide the truth one was one of them but it seemed that Naruto lacked this one. Later Shizune would realize that she was one of the few people who could see through his fake smiles and crazy gestures.

Naruto, instead of waiting for the questions that would surely come, assured her that everything was fine and rolled over to continue his sleep. His body relaxed as he heard his teammate move back to her sleeping bag but his eyes did not close and sleep didn't come. It was always like this after one of those 'prophetic' dreams. Slowly he was starting to understand, if only a little bit, how Gaara could have went mad after years of sleepless nights.

The next morning the group was closing in on Konoha. What they saw was something straight from their worst nightmares. The village was destroyed. The damage was worse than even during the Kyuubi attack. As Kankuro and Shizune immediately sped up Naruto stayed slightly behind. He could not let them see the light shiver that ran through him; they could not know that some deep and dark part of him enjoyed the sight of the destruction of the village that had hurt him so much. Quickly he tried to bring back all the good memories and to remember all the people that he still thought of as friends that were inside the village.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"Sakura! Where is Tsunade-sama?!" Shizune shouted as she and Naruto reached the temporary hospital set up on the fringes of the village. The earth shook and screams could be heard from inside the tents. The pink haired chunnin blinked as she saw her long lost teammate for the first time but Shizune stepped in between them before anything could happen.

"It's the Akatsuki, They attacked last night. Lady Hokage is fighting them off with Jiraiya-sama but it is not going well." The last part was said quietly. There was no point in making the patients or the medics panic any more than they already did. Naruto then saw a small white slug on Sakura's shoulder. Jiraiya had once told him of Tsunade's slug summons so that explained it. He was not entirely surprised when it spoke up.

"Shizune-san, Naruto-san; Tsunade-sama needs help, currently they are fighting the leader of the group near the memorial." Shizune's fists clenched but Naruto stopped her before she could move in the direction of the fight.

"Stay here Shizune, they need your help and you will be able to do much more in here." She was about to protest but Naruto continued speaking. "I have killed Akatsuki before, Defeated Jiraiya many times in our spars. You once told me that you were a medic first, a fighter second so do what you do best." Finally she nodded before running off with Sakura and Yuki. Naruto unsealed his sword and was gone without a trace.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"Hopefully I am not late Jiraiya!" Naruto shouted as he arrived side by side with his mentor. Jiraiya straightened up and shook his head sadly. "Where is Tsunade?" Naruto asked as he eyed the five Akatsuki standing on the other side of the barren piece of land that replaced what he remembered to have been the memorial and the surrounding forest.

"She expended nearly all of her chakra; healing the hundreds of injured and fighting at the same time does that to you." Jiraiya answered in the most serious tone Naruto heard from him in a long time. "We have killed one of them already and hopefully weakened the others. I will take Gamabunta and the other summons and take on the summoner first."

"Anything I should know?"

Jiraiya rolled his shoulder before speaking. "I found out the hard way that they share vision so flanking is out of the question. The leader can manipulate repulsive forces and the one on the left can absorb nearly any Jutsu." He paused for a second, as if debating whether to say anything before shaking his head. Naruto did not bother asking and instead focused on the chakra that already started to fill his chakra coils. The cloak sprang up and two tails appeared behind him.

"You once mentioned an anbu in the village that could help in capturing the beasts with his abilities... You should try to find him if possible." Naruto said as he brought his cleaver forward and moved his body to be ready to jump in at the Akatsuki who still stood still, waiting. At Jiraiya questioning glance Naruto sighed. "I don't trust myself, you shouldn't either..."

He was already moving when Jiraiya summed another giant toad just in time to smash a giant bird out of the sky. His sword was already moving at the still standing targets when he felt an unimaginable force fling him backwards. He was back on his feet and running in again, this time faster as a third tail formed behind him and his chakra cloak gained flickers and streaks of red. The Akatsuki did not seem bothered at all as they dodged and parried every single attack on his part, they really did share their vision...

Naruto only needed the hand sign for six clones to appear. Two jumped away from the fight while one was already forming the signs to the mist Jutsu. The real Naruto jumped away with the others while the three remaining clones circled the group of Akatsuki. Quickly sealing his sword he waited until mist started to flow down around his feet, it was enough. Dropping into an all fours run the mist started to gather around him, taking on the shape of his chakra cloak until Naruto completely disappeared within the thousands of tiny ice shards held together by the mist.

"Shinra Tensei!" The leader of the group shouted as he ran forward, straight against Naruto. The giant fox jaws opened, as if ready to swallow the orange haired Akatsuki whole, until the force wave hit and dispersed the chakra construct.

At least that is what it looked like until the construct reformed behind the long haired Akatsuki and swallowed him up.

"It seems our information was lacking..." Calmly said the leader as the other Naruto clones joined the fight.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"Lady Tsunade!" The fifth Hokage only smiled as the toad gently dropped her onto one of the stretchers right beside Shizune.

"Shizune... It's good to see you. H-how did it go with the Raikage?" Shizune wasn't listening and instead was frantically using all her medical knowledge to see what was wrong with the woman she, by all means, considered to be like her mother. A withered hand caught Shizune's shoulder. "You worry too much... Shizune" That was enough to stop the frantic and desperate movements and the student looked down at her teacher. "Naruto is here, right? Everything is going to be fine..."

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"The animal and human paths have fallen..." Konan's head whipped around with eyes opened in shock, a truly strange sight on the normally calm and collected face.

"Can't you use the Naraka path to bring them back?" The redhead slowly shook his head.

"There is no time and no body for the King of hell to consume." His head dropped forward slightly and his fists tightened as much as they could in his weak state. "Enough of playing around..."

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"Enough of playing around..." All three remaining Akatsuki said at the same time.

"Shinra Tensei!" The chakra construct opened its jaws only for the force to disperse it again but this time the paths of pain had a different plan. The Preta path was already moving into position when the next Jutsu came. "Banshō Ten'in!" The Ice and mist gathered together and was pulled straight towards the chakra absorbing field of the Preta path. The field started to swirl with white chakra until the shards broke up completely and a battered Naruto fell straight into the absorption field. Preta's arms closed him in and he could feel the chakra leaving him, even Kyuubi's cloak dissipated.

"It is over nine-tails. Give up now and we will spare Kirigakure." Spoke the leader as he slowly walked up to Naruto. Naruto in turn started laughing, lightly at first until it turned into a full blown laugh.

"Do you really think that Kyuubi's power was the only source of chakra I could use?" The smirk on his face widened when he felt the natural energy used in sage mode flow through him and into the Akatsuki behind him. "Sage chakra as taught by the frogs is extremely hard to control and contain." Naruto chuckled again when he felt the Akatsuki behind him stiffen as parts of him already turned into a stone toad statue. "I wouldn't even try using it in the state I am in right now, completely without preparation as this is what could happen." He finished by motioning back with his head. "You wanted the nine tails? You will get it..."

The two remaining paths of pain jumped back as a blood red cloak of chakra surrounded Naruto, three tails appearing immediately. It was no longer a man but a beast.

"Kakuzu had reported that it took four tails before he lost control. We are still fighting the host now." The leader said as the beast lunged straight for him. The Preta path ran in front of attack and smashed his hands into the ground with the summoning Jutsu. The statue, the King of Hell, sprang out just in time to intercept the Jinchuriki. The blue flames lit up around it and inside its open mouth and a tongue lashed out and wrapped itself around the neck of the half transformed tailed beast. The beast roared in pain as the chakra in its cloak started to bubble and travel along the tongue that was trying to reel it in towards the statue. The chakra beasts roared again and lunged forward, over the statue and straight for its summoner. The Preta path stood no chance as the chakra tails extended and wrapped around it. They squeezed harder until the demonic chakra burned straight through it.

"I see..." The only remaining Akatsuki said as he watched it all happen. As the Preta path was killed and its body fell to the ground the chakra cloak started to recede back to reveal a panting Naruto, although all his wounds seemed to have healed up it took a lot out of him to keep using this chakra without 'giving in' to the Kyuubi. He looked up only to hear those dreaded words again. "Shinra Tensei."

The Deva path followed after Naruto as the blonde's body was thrown across the crater, which was their battlefield, and smashed into one of the rocky walls. It wasn't over as the Akatsuki summoned black metal rods from inside the sleeves of his robe and pierced Through Naruto and into the rock behind him until the blonde was nailed to it. More rods appeared until Naruto could not move without causing extreme pain. His mind slowed down and the Kyuubi roared in rage as a pair of purple ringed eyes appeared in all his thoughts.

"We played this game for long enough nine-tails." The leader of the Akatsuki said as he walked straight up to the 'bound' Naruto. "Now you will help me in achieving peace... ending the cycle of hatred. Your death will be one of the last needed..."

Naruto's attempt to speak made him cough up blood instead as the chakra disruption blades dug further into his lungs. "You speak of peace yet you kill and destroy... Ha... "

"I found a solution. To make people understand each other. In the end when all can feel the same pain... the same feeling of loss... only then we can stop the fighting." He grabbed Naruto by his hair and pulled up. "Humans are flawed; it is in their nature... I made the Akatsuki so they could be enlightened, so they could finally understand."

"There are other ways! Jiraiya had thought me many things and one of them was to never stop fighting for true peace... not one brought through fear and pain." Naruto tried to smile in face of death and through the pain but it was hard to do so.

"You may be right but do you have another answer? Another solution?" When Naruto stayed silent the Akatsuki released his hair and took a step back. "You do not. Now you see why I have to do this."

"Yahiko! Stop this madness!" Both the Akatsuki and Naruto moved their heads to where the voice came from. It was Jiraiya, limping towards them. "What happened to you that corrupted my teachings so much..."

"Jiraiya-sensei, you are wrong. Yahiko is no longer here..." Naruto could not believe his ears but it felt as if the Akatsuki sounded... as if he was grieving and what was it about a teacher? When he forced his body to look at Jiraiya he did not know what to say. There were tears running down his sensei's face...

"The Rinnegan... I- I think that I understand... Yahiko, Nagato, Konan... I'm sorry that I failed in finding peace. I'm sorry that you had to go through all that pain..." His voice was growing quieter with every second and his fist finally unclenched. "...but you leave me no choice." As if with no effort a rasengan at least three times the size of normal appeared in his open palm and the Toad Sage charged forward against his long lost student. The attack never connected.

Naruto's body shook in pain just at the sight of Jiraiya's body falling to the ground. The disruption blades pierced him right through. His white hair slowly turned crimson as the wounds overflowed with blood.

"Jiraiya..." He could not believe it. The blades holding him back shook again and a scream tore through his throat as Kyuubi's chakra set his body aflame. The blades held only for a second before they shattered into hundreds of tiny pieces which quickly burned in the poisonous chakra.

The orange haired Akatsuki did not even get time to turn around when a claw made of chakra slashed him across the upper torso and face before another claw grabbed him and threw him as if he was a nothing but a dead body already...

The cloak flickered again before disappearing enough for Naruto to approach Jiraiya safely. As gently as his shaking hands and glassed eyes allowed him he turned his mentor over. He was still alive if only barely.

"N-aruto... I'm sorry..." The blonde could not stop the tears. The ones he had thought to have dried up the day the third died. "There is one more... hidden somewhere close... he is the true leader." Naruto could only nod at his sensei's words. Jiraiya chest rumbled lightly in what was supposed to be a dying man's laugh. "I think this... this is quite a fitting end for such a legend as me... Don't you thi-nk..."

Naruto couldn't help but laugh through the tears. "Ye-ah... yeah it is..."

Jiraiya gripped his student's hand as tightly as his body was allowing him to. "You should take up the pen after me, Narut..." His eyes finally close fully and his mouth set into a small smile. It would not do for the normally joyful and full of life sage to pass away with a frown on his face. Naruto's body silently shook as he felt the grip on his hand lessen until it disappeared completely. A flicker of Akatsuki robes in the corner of his eyes was all it took for him to see red.

The chakra cloak closed back around him and five tails formed behind him. As the chakra expanded, and mixed with the blood of the host, the beast released an earth shaking roar that could be heard all over what remained of Konoha. It lunged for the Akatsuki but the repulsion Jutsu still proved to be too strong. Skipping right through to the seventh tail the Chakra beast grew even larger as it stood at nearly the full height of the Kyuubi. This time a Jutsu was not enough and the Akatsuki was forced to retreat back as the tailed beast lunged forward again.

The game of cat and mouse continued as a seven tailed Kyuubi ravaged the forests surrounding Konoha's walls in its pursuit of the Akatsuki leader. While chaos ensued outside, only grief and anger resided inside.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"Will you let me free? You know that I can easily destroy that maggot that killed your teacher." The Kyuubi said as he stalked back and forwards from behind the bars of his cage. Naruto meanwhile was sitting down with his back against one of the giant bars, silent tears flowing down his face. "All you have to do is rip off the seal, Naruto..." He could feel the Kyuubi's warm breath on the side of his face now and in all that pain the offer sounded fine, he wanted to rip off the seal and to let the Kyuubi loose on that bastard but... deep inside he knew that it would only make things worse. Kyuubi would eat him whole. He would be dead and the nine tails would be loose on the village.

"No... I will not do it because we both know what you would do, Kyuubi!" By now he was standing again and was nearly eye to eye with the beast. The giant fox flicked its tails once more before moving his head to the side, averting his eyes from those of his host.

"Yes... we both know..."

Naruto slid back down to the floor and rubbed his face to get some of the weariness out. There was still a fight to finish if only the Kyuubi would let him in control again. Right now it was neither him nor the fox in control. It was a combination of Naruto's anger and immediate goals couple with the fox's instincts and power, a volatile combination. Suddenly he felt his vision pull back, a light tug in the back of his head. The beast outside was winning and soon he would be himself again.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

The tailed beast roared as tons upon tons of rocks closed around it, caging it in a moon-like sphere. In the crater below the Deva path stood with his arms reaching out into the heavens. His legs shook and tears of blood started to flow down his face. Despite the closeness to the source it seemed that the body would not be able to withstand holding the Jutsu up for much longer. In a final attempt at subduing the nine-tails the rocks started to crush together and the sphere began to compress. Slowly only the roaring head of the, not fully formed, Kyuubi could be seen a small speck of red on the giant sphere before it too disappeared completely.

He could feel that the nine-tails had stopped moving, that it was finally defeated. His hands dropped down to the sides and the Deva path dropped to its knees as the incomplete 'creation of all things' started to fall apart and slowly drop to the ground below from where it was taken. What he did not see was the small body of a blonde Kiri ninja twist around in mid air.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto willed his eyes to open when he felt cool air blow into his face. Blinking a couple times he cleared his vision until finally realizing that he was falling down and if he didn't do something quick then even the Kyuubi would not save him. The kunai of ice formed in his hand on its own and found its target straight away in the form of a kneeling Akatsuki. Before either of them really knew it the kunai was at the Akatsuki's throat.

"I would love to make you feel the same pain I did but... you are not the enemy, are you? You are merely a puppet..." Naruto snarled into the Akatsuki's face. Lack of any sort of reaction, even a smallest twitch only confirmed his words. Without waiting for a response the kunai move to the side with a wide slash, the wound appearing a thin line at first until the body shook and blood started to flow as if from a broken valve. Naruto took a step back and pushed the body back. It fell backwards with a dead thud and laid still. Now there was one more to find.

Naruto calmed himself as best as he could and gathered the little natural energy he needed to find the one behind all of this. Soon enough the feeling of natural energy filled his entire body and when he opened his eyes again they were the eyes of a sage. Slowly but surely he walked up to the corpse in front of him and ripped out one of the chakra receivers. When he was stabbed with the chakra disruptors he could feel something or someone through them, as if someone was looking through his eyes. If they could do that then together with his sensor abilities Naruto knew he would be able to trace the signal back to its source.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"Konan..."

"Nagato?" The blue haired Akatsuki asked her only remaining friend.

"The Deva path has fallen... Get Yahiko's body back to Amegakure..." In one last moment of defiance she shook her head. She could not leave him alone, not right now. "He is coming; you might not get another chance... I don't want to see you get hurt..." As her mouth opened to voice another refusal the 'door' to their hideout exploded in a flurry of paper.

"Don't even bother fighting back. I came here only for him..." Naruto said as he walked in through the broken entrance and towards the redhead surrounded by life support machines.

"I followed his dream even if our paths in reaching it were different, Naruto. We out of all people should be able to... understand each other..." Nagato's voice was interrupted by a few coughs until blood started to run down from the corner of his mouth. By the withered state of his body Naruto was surprised that this Nagato was still able to speak at all. "I do not have much time left and I have lost... It doesn't matter who was wrong or right anymore..." Naruto's anger finally boiled over at the lack of any sort of regret over killing his teacher.

"You talk as if nothing happened! As if Jiraiya and all the others had not died... You talked about the cycle of hatred, how you wanted to break it yet what you did today only extended it further..." His fists clenched tightly before the tension was released together with a long breath. "I want to kill you... to make you suffer... For years I have lost sight of the dream that Jiraiya was trying to pass on to me and even if I do not reach it I will pass it on... but that will not stop me from getting my revenge! My justice!" The ice kunai appeared in his hand again and he moved forward to claim his revenge when a semi transparent swirl swallowed up Nagato together with his life support equipment. As Naruto and Konan moved around they saw the orange mask of Tobi appear out of a similar whirlpool followed by the rest of his body

"Tobi! What did you do with Nagato!?" Konan shouted at her fellow Akatsuki. He in turn turned his single eye to Naruto and laughed childishly. It was then that Naruto saw the Sharingan spinning wildly.

"I cannot let him die or waste his life away... I still need him for plans of my own Konan..." The voice sounded as if he was highly amused by this whole situation. "And I'm sorry for stealing him away like this Uzumaki. Until we meet again." The masked Akatsuki disappeared in the light bending swirl which appeared to have come out of the sharingan. Naruto's scream echoed across the now nearly empty cave as he dropped to his knees and tried to take out his anger on the rocky floor. He did not even notice Konan leave by turning into thousands of pieces of origami paper.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

"Lady Shizune you need to take a rest... there is nothing you can do when you are like this..." Sakura said as she led the distraught and tired Shizune away from all the pain and misery inside the tents. What she got in return was a burning glare.

"Don't you care that she is... that she..." Shizune did not finish as tears started to fall down her face again. Sakura did her best not to break down as well and led the medic into one of the empty tents.

"Just... try to sleep..." Not knowing what else to say the pink haired medic left as Shizune lay down alone.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto slowly staggered back through the ruins of Konohagakure. The whole place was deserted... He was met with no cheers of victory... only a dead silence. As he started to get closer to both ninja and civilians started to appear. They ran around carrying crates or clearing out the rubble and that was a good thing, at least they did not sit around and do nothing. It seemed like no one was paying him any particular attention... maybe did not know or did not recognise him but in the end it was for the better; no one bothered him when he only wanted to be by himself...

It was then that he felt a gentle tug on his hand and the light prickling of teeth digging into his skin. Without even looking he knew it was Yuki and she was one of the few that he trusted with his life so without pause he followed her wherever she would lead him. Slowly they approached a tent on the fringes of the temporary settlement and that is when he heard the sobbing. It wasn't hard to hear for anyone who paid any attention but in this situation not many did. He felt Yuki push him forward with her head and so he gently pushed one of the opening flaps away as to not startle whoever was inside.

In the darkness it would be hard to figure out who the person was if not for the very unique clothes and the medium length black hair. He was reluctant to approach her but after what she did for him he could not just leave her.

"Shizune..." Despite her state right now she was still a ninja and of course she noticed that someone entered the tent and then sat down on the hospital bed beside her but it wasn't until she heard his voice that she realized just who it was...

"Naruto..." At first she did not react at all. Her eyes widened when the idea that he was here finally set. If he was here then he must have won... When the news of the Kyuubi appearing in Konoha reached them she had started to lose hope. "Naruto!" This time her voice was much livelier and she threw her arms around him as if to make sure that he really was there. That the Akatsuki were really gone from Konoha. She could not stop the tears from flowing even harder than they did before Naruto arrived.

"It's going to be alright..." He was tired both emotionally and physically himself and this was the only thing his mind could conjure at the moment even if he did not believe it himself. What she said next was merely a whisper but it broke him even further.

"...She is gone..."Her voice was without any emotion for she had spent all of them in the hours before. Naruto knew exactly who she meant; there was only one person who meant so much to her... the sannin were truly no more. He moved her closer to him and tightened his hands around her just a bit more. One last tear flowed down his face. He could not let her or anyone else see him cry, not now...

"When the third died you... you were there for me and it's only right that I'm here now, Shizune..." He took in a shaky breath before slowly moving both of them until his back was leaning against the tilted part of the bed. "I remember... you told me stories about him and your travels and the village... To take my mind off everything else if only for a moment." He waited for a moment as her cries and light shaking started to stop and she started to breathe more deeply and evenly. When she did not refuse him or push him away he continued. "Ji... Jiraiya once told me this story when he tried to woo Tsunade when they were on a mission in Rice country... I myself do not believe all of it to be true but he always insisted that it was..."

**To Be Continued...**

**AN:** Finally I got around to writing again and it feels nice to do so. I think that this extended rest was good for me as at points I really did feel burnt out. Seeing as I have exams coming in the next week that will last for nearly a whole month there might be no update until the end of June. Hopefully I will be able to squeeze it in in-between the study but as always, no promises. **Leave a review if you can, they really do wonders to the souls of authors.**


	19. The God That Failed

The rain continued to fall. It never stopped, not here. It was one of the promises made by the leaders of Amegakure, a promise that one day the rain would stop. It would have been a testament of power because to control the elements is to hold the power of near godhood.

Nagato trembled as a wave of cold air blew in through the open window in the highest tower of the hidden village. His head lolled lightly to the side, rinnegan eyes only continued to blankly stare ahead no matter how much pressure his closest friend applied to his hand.

"When the time comes Ame will have to be ready at your-my command." A voice echoed from the back of the room. The orange swirl mask slowly came to view in the dimmed light. Konan's concentration momentarily flickered to the true leader of the Akatsuki before moving back to the still form of her friend.

"As long as Nagato lives... I will do anything you want." Her head bowed down in shame as she spoke. This man was the reason for all of this, he was the reason why their group lost sight of their group goal, and he was the reason why Nagato was the way he was now... The revenge they all sought so hard did not pay off; not for the price they paid but there was nothing she could do now.

As the sound of a Tobi's vacuum completely absorbed the sound of the pelting rain outside and the world was silent for a second before the normality of Ame set back in and as Konan took another hopeful look at her... most precious person, she realised something that they all had deeply known since the very start.

Sooner or later everyone had to pay for their sins.

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto rubbed his eyes and yawned before standing up. He winced lightly as he stretched, trying to sleep did not help him sleep at all and sleep was something that did not come to him easily these days and when it did it was filled with those damned dreams. Looking to the side he saw that Shizune was still completely out of it, hugging Yuki as if she was some hot water bottle. A small smile slid onto his face. Lately he did not have the time or mood to keep the fox proper company.

Taking a few steps placed him right in front of the entrance flaps to the tent and after hesitating for a second he brought his right hand up in a sign for a Jutsu he had not used in a long time. He was never much for stealth or at least not this kind of stealth and one could see why when it took an incredible amount of focus for the henge to finally settle. Even then he knew that it was probably imperfect from the image he had come up with in his head. He pushed the flaps open and when the coast was reasonably clear he left. He had to think and in this... _"Wretched place... they deserved everything they got..."_ The whisper in his mind spoke and for once in a long time he was not sure if it was the Kyuubi messing with him again, somehow breaking through the shields of the seal, or if he actually thought that to be true. Using the same routes he did as a child Naruto wove through the crumbling remains of Konoha and towards the Hokage monument.

When he arrived at the top of the cliff the henge was replaced by the transparency Jutsu he had learned from Jiraiya. The place felt and looked completely the same as it did the last time he had been here, his getaway from the village, except now there wasn't really a village left. The farther he looked the worse it seemed up until he got to the wide path he and the Kyuubi had torn up in the forest.

In this peace and quiet it did not take long for him to decide upon his next course of action. There was not much left to do, not many people left to kill, no one to come back to. Now he only had to pick up his furry teammate and leave before any questions came up from the council or whoever was in charge of this mess.

This time round he took a different path, in part to 'cover his tracks' and in part to see more of Konoha. That was when he stumbled upon the half standing academy. What he remembered to have been his last class, the one led by Iruka, was no longer standing together with most of that part of the building.

"How is this thing still standing..." Naruto mumbled as he started to move towards the metal swing without a pause. His hand slowly reached out and grasped the cold metal chain before Naruto sat down on the swing. So absorbed in his memories, Naruto did not even notice his henge slipping off.

It wasn't until the swishing sound of the wind and the creaking of the rusty chain was joined by a low playful growl and a jerky tugging on one of his legs that Naruto noticed he wasn't entirely alone.

"Thank you for staying with me..." He could tell that her throat was still torn just by the volume of her voice and as Shizune took a seat in the other swing he saw that she took her time to clean up. There were no signs of what state she was in the night before.

There was nothing he could say or do that would make her feel better and he wanted to because she was there for him when the Third had died. Now they were in similar situations with their most important people gone forever. His hand twitched and finally ended up moving up to the one of small scrolls he held underneath his jacket and when he pulled it away he was holding a regular sized bottle of sake. This is what both Jiraiya and Tsunade would have done...

Both Shizune and Yuki looked to Naruto when they heard the light pop of something being unsealed. Only Shizune was somewhat shocked when she saw Naruto take a big gulp from the clay coloured bottle. Her eyes widened even more when he moved his arm and handed her the bottle. She had despised drink since she could remember as it nearly always got her and Lady Tsunade in trouble wherever they were staying but for some reason her grip on the neck of the bottle tightened and she swung it up. Quickly she found that whatever was inside was quite stronger than what little she was used to drinking before. She could only glare at the blonde beside her as Naruto started to quietly chuckle at her coughing and sputtering before grabbing the bottle from her and swinging it up again.

"What are you going to do next?" Shizune asked with a somewhat meek voice. She sounded unsure, unsure of the question and whether it was aimed at Naruto or herself. Naruto spoke as they continued to drink. He omitted most details and details but he did tell her he was going to finish some business in Ame before heading back to Kirigakure and waiting for the next Kage council. By the time his little story was finished the bottle was empty as well and while he felt just fine Shizune was swaying to the sides.

Her eyes felt heavy and her whole body felt as if swimming. The slow, rhythmic movements of the swing did not help her at all and she could hardly focus as Naruto started to speak. "I'm leaving today." Shizune heard Naruto say as her head refused to stay up and slumped lightly to her right. "I will finish what I started... I will lay them to rest... Even if it kills me." Her eyes finally closed and for a moment she felt as if falling before something solid and warm encroached all around her. It was finally then that Shizune fell asleep and Naruto dearly hoped that the headache she would have whenever she woke would be better than any nightmare that might have caught her otherwise.

After leaving Shizune back at the tent Naruto left for his last stop. He was somewhat surprised that Ichiraku ramen was still mostly standing. His henge back in effect, Naruto waited silently out of view until no one was in the front of the stand and calmly walked up to the stand. Gently he placed down the green toad wallet that he carried with him for years. It was a gift from the Third that came together with his apartment and the allowance he got before he became a ninja. Years ago it was nearly always empty, it never had enough to let him buy everything he needed but today was one of the days were it was filled to the brim with tied up notes. He placed it down on the counter and with a last pat Naruto parted with his precious Gama-chan.

By the time Teuchi had come back to the front of the stand Naruto was gone. The green toad was hard to miss on the counter and when the cook, somewhat reluctantly, opened it up he found himself with enough money to last him for years. It wasn't hard to recognise the wallet and remember who the owner was but Teuchi said nothing. He clutched the wallet tightly with his hands and walked back to the back of the stand.

It didn't take long for Naruto and Yuki to get out of Konoha without anyone noticing. Not even the Anbu were following him this time unless they came up with some new stealth techniques. After getting away far enough Yuki grabbed onto Naruto's sleeve and they were gone.

When Shizune woke up the first thing she did was bend over the side of the bed and throw up. It was probably the feeling of nausea that actually woke her up. The second thing, after her head cleared just enough to think somewhat soberly, was to use the Jutsu Tsunade had come up with years ago to free herself from any hangovers. It didn't take long to realise that she was alone again. Through the haze of what happened a few hours ago she tried to recall the conversation she shared with Naruto and as his words connected with the story she had heard from Tsunade her eyes slowly widened in realisation. He was the only one left... since Tsunade was gone...

"There is nothing left for me here..." And as she ran out of the tent, startling a tired looking Sakura, and aimed herself roughly to the west. He already had a few hours on her and moved faster than anyone else in the elemental nations. She still had to thank him for helping her out and beat him up for messing up her life...

**-o-o-o-o-o-**

Naruto dropped to his knees and struggled for breath. Travelling this far without really stopping was too much even for him but he had to get it over with quickly. Yuki was sitting patiently at his side despite the pelting rain. Naruto drew back and sat cross legged in the mud and closed his eyes, he had to focus now. It happened the same way it always did. Everything seemed to slow down and the sounds amplified; each breath in and out. Each drop of water, he could feel each and every one of them. Everything around him bursting with the natural chakra. When his eyes opened again they were the eyes of a sage and the giant metropolis in the distance was clearly visible despite the distance and the curtain of rain.

Yuki was left behind at an emergence point in some rock outcrops less than a mile from the city together with any gear he wouldn't need now but would probably need later. It did not take Naruto long to locate the chakra signature of Pein. He made sure to commit it to memory. If he had to he was pretty sure that he would have been able to smell Pein out by his blood. It was somewhat funny as well that they were hidden away in the highest tower which in a way was the easiest play for him to reach. Naruto broke into a run as two ice kunai formed in his hands. A cold misty breath escaped his lips as the first kunai was launched towards his target.

Every once in a while, when he had to leave the crystal mirrors and keep the kunai going, the city underneath him flashed by. It was so different than anything he had really seen before. So concentrated, filled with giant building and flashing signs yet it felt so dead. As if its people had lost the will to continue.

Before his kunai struck the building he cancelled the Jutsu and grabbed onto a piece of piping. Using chakra directly on the building sometimes activated all sorts of alarms in villages that used extensive sealing techniques, which was nearly no one anymore but one could never be too careful. His right hand formed into another one handed seal and the transparency Jutsu set in before, hopefully, anyone had seen him. When he landed on the balcony and broke the locks inside the huge glass doors, by freezing the water inside them, Naruto walked inside. His sage chakra was running low again, he didn't gather too much of it, and so the last of it was used to check for any people who might have hid in the room. When Naruto ensured he was alone with Pein he dropped the invisibility.

Pein was in a horrible state. He had looked bad back in Konoha but it seemed that whatever sickness was killing him had advanced a lot in the hours since that Tobi had spirited him away. Now though none of that mattered. Before him was the person responsible for Jiraiya's death. A fellow student of the sannin, one that had claimed it all to have been in the name of peace...

"War in the name of peace... to make everyone feel the same pain, so that we can understand each other." Naruto ground out as he stepped forward. "Well, I understand it all. I really do get it but that doesn't mean I or anyone else would have done what was right... After all you didn't you bastard..." By now he was right in front of the sitting and unmoving redhead. He stared into unblinking purple eyes and his grip faltered a bit before a new wave of anger set in and his arm continued its swing. It would be a quick death; it would be merciful after everything he had done...

It would have been if not for the paper user who has managed to arrive just in time and with a flick of her hand her whole body dispersed into thousands of sheets of paper and slammed into the ice user. Seeing a window of opportunity Konan willed the paper clone that she had left attached to Naruto to move him towards the balcony and when he was far enough she activated the paper bombs.

The whole building shook down to its foundations. If that wasn't enough then the burst of dust and rubble that flew out from the top of the tower had surely attracted the attention of any guards or Anbu within the city. As Konan started to form a giant paper fan to settle the dust and improve her vision she found herself pinned to the wall behind her. Her throat started to burn and breathing became hard. The mad view in the scarlet eyes of the blonde in front of her did not help at all. She tried to hit him and free herself yet it seemed that every hit was actually hurting her more than it did him. Naruto snarled like a wild animal and tightened his hand more and she became afraid, not for herself but for her friend because if she wasn't there to defend him then the blonde before her would kill him. Her breaths turned into desperate gasps and her world started to turn black.

"Hmh, I didn't think that you would want revenge so much. After all, Konoha stayed safe for years while you lived in Kiri..." The unconscious paper user dropped to the floor and Naruto, now himself again, turned around to face Tobi.

Naruto glanced at the Pein and the blue haired kunoichi behind him and forced himself not to show anything on his face. It was true. For a moment he was ready to finish both of them off but Jiraiya's teaching were still deeply implanted in his mind. To be the better person so that one day the cycle of hatred could be broken. He would not kill Pein, especially because of the state he was in. The man wearing the orange mask who was standing before him now was a totally different matter though.

Tobi tilted his head to the left slightly as if in amusement. "You can leave, nine-tails. You do not matter anymore." The words sounded like an order from a person who held himself above others. Unconcerned by anything else... but not arrogant with his power.

"You are leading the Akatsuki now? I will take my chances then and get rid of you while I'm here..." With that Naruto lunged forward, a rasengan in hand but he met only empty air.

"I asked you to leave." There was anger in that voice but not one formed against a hated enemy. Instead it was that of a father speaking to a petulant child. "You are the last one left, you should value your life more." Just as Naruto was about to pop a few clones and hopefully make the situation work Tobi disappeared again. When Naruto was sure he knew where Tobi was again it was far too late and the world around him was swished away. The sight of a strange emptiness flashed across his view a few times before he was roughly deposited outside Ame, strangely nearby the place where he had left Yuki before.

Tobi was standing a just within clear hearing distance from him and as he felt the never ending rain soak his clothes again, the Akatsuki spoke for the last time. "That was your last warning. There will be a place for people like you in the world I want to create, don't forget that." The light and sound bending vortex opened again and swallowed Tobi up before collapsing on itself, leaving Naruto alone again.

Naruto forced himself up and struggled to stay up on his legs. Something this Tobi did had emptied him from nearly all his chakra which he had proven over the years to have been nearly impossible. The Akatsuki had said that he, Naruto, was the last one and could have only meant the tailed beast but then why was he unimportant... and even then the Kage had to know. This man held more power than Pein did, than he did... No good would come from this and he wasn't strong enough to stop it.

This day had been quite strange overall and getting beaten nearly effortlessly despite years of training came as a shock but in the end it got even worse because the past finally decided to catch up to him and ask him to fulfil a promise.

"It's time Naruto." He could almost see that stupid grimace that was etched into that bastards face without even turning around. "We did what we had to do and we can finally settle this... and you can prove you are not a dead-last."

Sasuke Uchiha came back to finish their fight.

**To Be Continued...**

**AN:** My long disappearance is my fault only. I personally blame it on a total lack of inspiration and bad preparation with ideas for future plots and whatnot. In the end I got pissed off when hours at the computer resulted in empty pages but I told myself that I would finish this thing even if it killed me and that is what I'm going to do. This chapter is quite a bit shorter than the usual but I had a framed idea for it and at some point I could not write more no matter how much I tried. I will probably revisit it someday and add some things but at this moment it will only be expanded into the next chapter that will contain the fight with Sasuke [expect a similar length from the next chapter]. It is only now that I really realise that we are actually coming to a close and that there is only really six or so chapters left. Cya whenever.


End file.
